Team JGJO's Bizarre Adventure: Grim Tales
by Velo C. Raptor
Summary: Strange things are always afoot here, in this world called Remnant. Its people have semblances, and also have stands. But even such awesome abilities are not enough to protect life from death. Horrid beasts, foul plots, and evil beings quietly run amok, and those of the next generation have taken it upon themselves to fight the silent darkness. But even they cannot escape Gravity…
1. Trailer 1

Ownership:

RWBY is owned by creator Monty Oum, God rest his soul, and Rooster Teeth Productions.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is owned by manga author and illustrator Hirohiko Araki.

I, the humble author of this fan-work, own absolutely nothing, gain no profit whatsoever, and wish only to express my writing and love for these fandoms artistically.

* * *

I took a challenge

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Update: I made some updates

* * *

 ** _Team JGJO's Bizarre Adventure: Grim Tales_**

Trailer #1: Red Roses Bloom in the Golden Wind

 _Whenever I see my mom, I always make sure to fill her in on my life. I tell her absolutely everything, or as much as I can remember really, like how I'm doing, how Dad and Yang are, the good conditions my Crescent Rose is always in, or about the few occasions Crescent Rose isn't doing so well. Even with how much loving treatment I give her, there's always something bound to happen to Crescent Rose. I think Mom tries to make me admit that sometimes, reminding me to not let the pride get to my head. I don't know what I'd do without Mom._

 _Well, it's time to see her again. She's at the end of the forest, which happens to be a steep cliff side, always waiting for a visitor. Waiting for me. Right now, it's about the middle of winter, when the snow gets its heaviest in Patch, my home. I like the snow a lot, making snow angels or snowman, or just walking through the snow even, hearing it crunch under my boots. Mom likes it too, because she knows it makes me happy. Speaking of who, I'm at her place now! At the cliff, where she always is… where she always will be…_

 _…_

 _My mom passed away some time ago, when I was young. Really young. As in I was too young to understand what death was, how it makes someone feel when their loved one passes on, or that it's a natural part of life. Dad and Yang knew it better, Dad more so because… he… I'd rather not talk about it. In short, Yang had to explain everything to me because Dad… just couldn't. Even she had a hard time telling me everything. I don't really remember how I reacted, but Yang said it was the longest episode of sobbing I've ever had. But… we all got better, Dad especially. We moved on, accepted it, and we full-heartedly know Mom's in a better place._

 _So… when I said I see my mom and talk to her, I meant I visit her grave… and talk to her. I know her gravestone is not going to respond, but I can't help but talk to her. I feel that she always gives me a response, and I'd know what she would tell me… well, I would guess what she says. Don't question this, it's totally normal that a girl my age is talking to her deceased mother… right? I mean, it's kind of like talking to a living mother! Spending lots of family bonding time, talking about usual girl stuff, and weapons – especially weapons. … Sometimes, I think she wants me to talk about… boys._

 _Not that I need them! I just need my sweetheart, Crescent Rose in my life, that's all!_

 _…_

 _Well… maybe not just my scythe. There is one person I've liked a little more than usual, but as far as I know, we've just been friends. I've known him since we were four, and now we're at the same age of fifteen. We're totally childhood friends. He's kind, thoughtful, brave even, and he's just so cool! Although… he's not really social. I mean, I'm not that good talking to people either, kind of how we got to know each other, but it's like he intends to be introverted. It's as if he's wearing a mask on all the time (I don't mean a real mask, it's metaphorical… I think that's what it means). It makes me wonder how he even feels about me…_

 _Oh geez, you know what? I haven't even told my name to you guys, assuming you don't know who this is. I think I should tell you my crush–! I mean… my friend's name too, since you'll definitely hear about him a lot._

 _My name's Ruby Rose, and this was how I met Giorno Giovanna! Or "GioGio," as I like to call him!_

* * *

(eleven years ago)

* * *

"Ruby, come play with us!"

Every child knew that they had to go to school. Each day would be another session of classes about boring English, confusing math, and other subjects they were supposed to "learn." It's common for the youths to prefer accomplishing something else in place of school, one could say that it is normal. The many things any child would dread from school included pop quizzes and tests, strict teachers, and detention. Out of all the things that they would perceive about school, there was just one subject the kids enjoyed – leisure, or better known as play time.

At the halfway mark of the lunch hour, or when the teacher permitted it, the elementary or pre-schools of Patch island allows their very young students to enjoy a period of leisure. They could do whatever they wanted, for a certain period of time, like reading a book, eating a snack, taking a nap, or, the more popular option, play on the school's own playground installation. The children would almost always come to the school playground, playing on the seesaw, riding the swing sets, navigating the jungle gyms, or playing their own games on the ground.

Yang Xiao Long always enjoyed a day at the playground. She always got to see her friends and play on her favorite spring rider, which resembled a yellow motorcycle. But every time she went to the paly ground, she always made sure to do one thing first – getting her little sister Ruby involved. The poor girl never headed Yang's words, her social anxiety and fearfulness overtaking her mindset. She always stayed at the playground's border, keeping to herself.

Right now, they were going through the same routine, and was likely to end the same way as Yang's past attempts.

"I… I don't want to…" Ruby meekly answered, her small hands clutched together tightly and her gaze slightly downcast.

"Come on~! Please play with me! You can't be alone forever." Yang pleaded.

"But… but Yang… I…" She couldn't find the right words. Yang looked at her sister with saddened, disappointed eyes. She took a moment to think before sighing.

"Okay, fine." She replied. "Just… stay here, and don't run off." After letting her protective side show by telling Ruby what to do, she walked off to finally play.

"Y-Yang, wait…!" Ruby tried to call out, reaching her right arm to her, but her words were either too quiet for her big sister to hear, or she had opted not to listen.

Ruby sat down on the playground's border, her short pants protecting her rear from the dirty wood that made the boundary. She watched the other children with a mixture of regret and hesitation, seeing them play on all of the items the playground had to offer. She saw Yang play with her own friends, already riding the yellow spring motorcycle. Seeing her sister happy was a great thing to see, but it also reminded Ruby of her regret. She desperately wanted to tell Yang to play with her by themselves, just the two of them. She didn't tell her because she knew Yang would discourage that, too nervous to hear any scolding. She would have said something along the lines of 'you can't rely on your big sister for friends all the time.'

What was worse was the more she stayed alone, the more she felt afraid of being alone. And the more she felt afraid, the more she couldn't pull herself back. Ruby brought up her knees to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. She lowered her head into knees, averting her gaze from the playground. The feelings and thoughts of loneliness crept up on her once again. She tried her hardest to ignore it, holding her knees closer to herself and shutting her eyes tight. Like other times, she would only do one thing to stop it; she would not go to play with the others, or ask Yang to play with her, she would just wait out until leisure was over. Sometimes she would hope that the waiting would end sooner.

Just then, without looking, she heard a soft thump next to her. Surprised, Ruby brought her head, blinking out the tension in her eyes. Turning her head to her left, she saw a boy next to her, by less than half a meter away from her. He was about her height, having black hair in a bowl cut and, from what she could tell by looking at his side, blue eyes. He was wearing a simple white shirt and dark pants. The boy seemed unaware of Ruby next to him. The only thing he was doing was simply staring off into space, his face wearing a dull expression.

Ruby was more nervous than she could remember. An actual boy was sitting next to her! But why? Was it because… he liked her? Was he trying to show interest in her? That couldn't be! She thought that boys and girls could only start dating when they were adults, like Daddy said so?! (or they could date whenever and whoever they wanted, as Yang put it). Ruby hoped he wasn't one of the creepy boys, who Daddy and Yang told her to stay away from.

Despite her fear was rising with each thought, the curiosity seemed to overpower it. Mustering up the courage to even think of what to say, Ruby made to get this boy's attention.

"Um… h-hello?" Was her best attempt.

It took a moment for the boy to recognize the sound of another's voice. Slowly he turned his head, his dull blue eyes eventually meeting her own gaze. He blinked once or twice, taking in the image of the person before him. Finally, he spoke.

"Oh… I'm sorry… I didn't notice you were here first." Though his voice was very monotone, he sounded as young as Ruby, perhaps revealing that he was the same age.

Ruby blinked in surprise. That was it? He sat here without knowing she was there? … Well, that was a letdown. What kind of boy was he, being so unaware of his surroundings? The boy sat up, breaking Ruby out of her thoughts.

"I'll leave you alone… I'll sit somewhere else." He stated, and started walking along the border.

For some unexplainable reason, it felt wrong for Ruby when she saw him walk away. Though small and difficult to pinpoint, she could feel a pang of pain as he got farther. Maybe it was because… this was an opportunity. Maybe, just maybe, Ruby had found a way out of the lonely pit she constantly experienced on the playground. Unwilling to let this slip out of her grasp, Ruby was going to make sure he would stay.

"W-wait!" She called out to him. The boy stopped and turned his head to her, only by a slight margin faster than before. His attention was fully on her and he had a different expression – shock. Though it wasn't much, the boy earnestly showed shock through his slightly widened eyes.

"You… you can stay… please." Ruby told him. The boy's eyes widened further but still slightly, and his mouth opened in a small sliver, as if this was the first time he was told something like this. The first time someone told him to stay. However, as quickly as they widened, his eyes turned back to dullness. His gaze was analytical, making Ruby uncomfortable. A nervous frown was plastered on her face, a bead of sweat rolling down her forehead. Finally, he walked back and sat in the same spot next to her, the same distance between them as before.

Ruby exhaled in relief, thankful that she didn't offend him in some way. She looked back to the boy, who had now gone back to staring at whatever was ahead of him. At this point, Ruby let go of her knees, her legs relaxing. Preferring not to leave it at this, she wanted to get a certain piece information out of him.

"U-um," He turned his attention to her. "I'm… Ruby Rose…" She meekly introduced herself.

The boy blinked at her, and his gaze was still dull. Ruby wasn't sure if he understood what to do next but, thankfully, he did.

"Haruno… Shiobana." He finally introduced himself.

Ruby attempted to continue, but the boy, now named Haruno, averted his gaze from her and returned to stare into nothingness. Ruby was disappointed, wanting to talk more with this boy… but perhaps this was enough. Though not much was said, one could say Ruby had progressed, taking the first steps to making a friend. Ruby looked down to her knees and blushed, happy at the thought of making a new friend.

Unknown to the both of them, Yang was watching the events unfold from afar. She had made one last glance at Ruby while play but lo and behold, a boy was approaching her! Truth be told, if he was one of the creepy boys who was trying to make a move on Ruby, Yang would have slapped him silly. Thankfully, for his sake, that wasn't the case.

 _"I'm proud of you, little sis…"_ She thought with a smile on her face.

* * *

 _And that was it… we just gave our names to each other sat there until classes started… I know it's not much but it was, like, the most special moment in my life. I made a friend for the first time, of course I was nervous, cut me some slack! This wasn't the only time we saw each other, if that's what you're thinking. We pretty much sat there every day at free time. We may have not talked more than a couple words at first, but we learned to keep up a conversation between us… well, I did a little more of the talking. And we moved up to real school, going to Signal Academy together (not together-together!) and we spent even more time talking. We were the closest of friends!_

 _… Well… I think I was his only friend. He definitely wasn't one of the creepy boys, but… he wasn't treated like a normal one. A lot of the kids thought he was nosy, they wouldn't stick around him and some outright picked on him. His parents didn't do anything about it; in fact, they were his worst bullies. His mom neglected him and his stepdad… well, I don't know what he did, but the images of Giorno's face almost every morning were not very pretty and gave me a pretty good idea of what happened (that meanie!). Also, Giorno Giovanna wasn't his first name change!* When his mom married that jerk, his name was changed from Haruno Shiobana to something even I didn't like!_

 _It only kept on for about a year or so, pretty short when I think about. All of that harassment just went away, when Giorno met someone. I don't know who he was but I only saw him a few times, and when I asked about it Giorno would change the subject. Eventually, the kids started acting nicer to Giorno and he was getting better, like his stepdad stopped hurting him (either way, he was still mean!). Giorno changed too. He started getting bolder, growing less quiet, and even adding to our conversations a little more. He even came up with his current name, and changed it to that without argument (and frankly, it is a pretty clever name)._

 _But… he also started getting into trouble. I heard rumors that he started stealing goods from shops, that he was skipping out on school, and people were saying that he started driving around! He was too young to drive! I was so scared, I thought I was going to hear that he didn't pay people he owed back, cheated on tests, or stole girls' underwear! Just… NO DIGNITY!_

 _Thankfully, other than stealing and illegal driving, nothing else happened. Yang would have kicked his butt if he did do that. Eventually, Dad and even Yang told me to stay away from him when the rumors kept spreading, despite my protests. I wanted to talk to him about it, but I couldn't even think of those things without being embarrassed. But… when I did think about confronting him… he was gone. The headmaster said Giorno was expelled that day, and his parents reported that he went missing. A whole search of the island proved he wasn't on Patch anymore._

 _…_

 _It was two years since I last saw him… I just hope he's doing fine, and… I hope I can see him again, someday soon…_

* * *

The snowy weather was perfect for the solemn mood Ruby felt. That was how she often felt when visiting her mother's grave. She did her usual routine with her visits – speaking to her mother's grave about various subjects, like updates on the family or her feelings on a certain situation. She done so, and left when she felt enough time was well spent. She always felt happy to speak to her mother, but it also served to remind her that she had died and she could never get a real answer.

Ruby sullenly walked through the leafless trees, her boots crunching through the snow. The path she took led to an open field currently covered in a blanket of the white frost. Because her gaze was covered by her hood, she couldn't see much but the ground she stepped on. That's why she didn't know what exactly was growling at first.

 **Grrrrrrrrr~…**

"Huh?"

She looked up from the ground. In front of Ruby was a whole pack of Grimm. From the wolf like features, they were obviously Beowolves. However, from the lack of any armor, Ruby realized the exact age of these Grimm. She heard about the Newborn before, but never saw them in person. A Newborn Grimm was said to be the natural offspring of two Grimm of the same type, instead of being spawned from wherever they originated from. The Newborn were basically whatever type of Grimm they were, except they resembled their animal counterparts more closely with the lack of their bone armor, which has yet to develop. Though they still retained their black skin and fur, but had crimson eyes and blood red teeth. The eyes would later develop a yellow hue and the teeth will turn white like their masks, once they grow older.**

At first, Ruby initially felt surprise and fear, coming face to face with a horde of Grimm. Then, she felt a stir of excitement for the same reason. This was like a test, one that she could actually look forward to. She could finally test her weapon on the Grimm, the monsters she swore to kill as a Huntress in training. How exciting this could be! Ruby reached for her weapon, but then thought of something. This could be the perfect opportunity to record this event, one of her first slayings of Grimm.

Ruby reached for her scroll, activating it, and looking for its digital recorder. Feeling the need to communicate however, wanting consent for what she was about to do, she looked up to the Newborn Beowolves.

"Uh~… you guys wouldn't mind if I recorded this, right?" She asked. It was a little scatterbrained of her to attempt talking to feral monsters, but her intentions were pure.

Sadly, innocence does not make a Grimm consider a change of heart. With hunger and bloodlust fueling their thoughts, the beasts decided it was time to feast. The first three at the head of the pack charged towards, each one leaping into the air and raising their gruesome paws at her.

"EEP!" Ruby squeaked in fear. At that moment, to her fortune, she acted on one of her newfound instincts: the use of her semblance. In a sudden burst of rose pedals, she jumped, soaring well above the Grimm. The three who charged could only react in time to slash at nothing, and tumbled onto the snowy ground. The beasts were confused, but one had enough insight to look up. It saw the girl high in the air, the light of Remnant's shattered moon outlining her red-clad form. Her hood had flown off her head, revealing her youthful face of pale white skin, hair that was black at the roots but the tips transitioning to red, and her large eyes that shined silver.

 _"Okay Ruby, remember your training."_ She nervously thought to herself. _"Just stay calm, and remember every move you practiced on the dummies."_ While seemingly suspended in the air, for a considerably surprising amount of time, she reached for her weapon. Her Crescent Rose was her pride and joy, personally handcrafted by herself in her own school. Ruby took the concealed tool from the back of her waist. She twirled in the air as she activated Crescent Rose with a push of a button, transforming it into its powerful sniper rifle mode. She took aim while having a final, confident thought, _"… I got this!"_ and fired.

Another aspect of the Newborn that differed from an older Grimm was their innards. A creature of Grimm's blood and flesh was a disgusting color of pure black, much like the color of their skin and fur. A Newborn's flesh, however, was a bright red, like the color of a rose or human blood. It was theorized that once they aged, the flesh would develop into a darker color, and ultimately turn black. Because the Newborn were so rare, however, the actual color of their inner workings is undetermined, only being claimed to be red from spontaneous witness accounts.

Ruby had just unknowingly proved this theory, by simply shooting down one of the Grimm before her. The bullet tore through the creature's skull, cleaving it like a butcher's knife through meat, thanks to the force of the shot. What remained of the Grimm's head was thrown back by the force, then lolled to the side before the body fell down. The monster's corpse started to dissipate in a similar fashion to Ruby's semblance. Speaking of whom, she finally landed, both feet firmly planted on the ground.

"I did it?" She asked incredulously, before cheering at her successful kill. "YES! That's one down… and a whole lot more to go." She couldn't celebrate any further, the other Grimm began to rush towards her. Though one of their kind had fallen, they were undeterred in getting a taste of this human's flesh, and the night was still young.

Ruby leapt over another Grimm, before it could swipe at her. With another simple pull of the trigger, she ended the second Grimm's life with a shot to the back. Still in the air, she took aim at a third Grimm, fired, and blasted its side into a bloody paste. Ruby landed in a graceful somersault as a fourth leapt to strike at her. Before it knew what was going to happen, she aimed her weapon and once again fired, blowing a hole dead center into the beast and throwing its corpse into the ground.

Now with four kills under her belt, Ruby rolled back and stood up. It was time to really give these Grimm a show. With each step she took backwards and the twirl of her weapon, the barrel was unfolding by itself. What was once a mere high powered rifle was now a massive, intimidating scythe. The blade was practically sharper than the Newborns' own claws. One wolf was unimpressed however, as it sprung forth and ran towards her. With enough time to react, Ruby spun around and caught the attacking Grimm, hooking its head in the crook of her weapon. Though it was a hard blow to its head, it was undeterred as it looked at the girl right in the eye, baring its open maw full of crimson teeth.

"Oh, wow, you need to clean your teeth, mister." Ruby playfully quipped, the only response she got from it was an angered snarl. Even though she was earnestly afraid of these Grimm, she was strong enough to hold onto her wits, confident in her ability to fight and win. Ruby smirked as she pulled Crescent Rose's trigger, but the Grimm still did not understand that it was doomed. Using the force of the weapon firing, Ruby cleaved the beast in two, its upper chest sliced cleanly from the rest of its body, its head and right arm still attached. As the upper half of the beast was flung into the air, Ruby kneeled down as she finished swinging her weapon in a full arc. As the halved corpse fell to the ground, Ruby could help to express her joy over such an impressive feat.

 _"THAT WAS SO AWESOME! GO ME!"_ Of course, all she could do was think the words to express her elation, as she was still in the midst of battle. As more Grimm charges, Ruby stood up and swung her weapon into the ground, stabbing her weapon's blade into the ground. This way, it adds support on her when firing, absorbing shock and keeping it from knocking her back. Each shot she fired hit their target, felling each Grimm and throwing their bodies back, ending their existence in the world.

One Grimm, however, got lucky as it was only inches away from Ruby. It swiped at her, but Ruby jumped with her weapon in hand and detaching it from the ground, in time for the Grimm to miss and only strike the air. Still in the air, Ruby fired her weapon, striking the beast dead center, and the force of the shot flinging her backwards. Once again she used Crescent Rose to strike the terrain, this time to stop herself from flying. As the weapon skidded slightly before stopping with a jerk, Ruby performed a backflip and landing her own two feet on the very handle of her weapon. Standing from there, she turned head around to see more Newborns emerging from the forest.

 _"How many of them are there?"_ Ruby thought to herself. Their numbers seemed to be kept the same or growing, with each Grimm appearing on the battlefield. Like a Hydra, if one head is cut off, two more take its place… but she would keep fighting, until there wasn't a single head left. The skirmish kept on. Ruby performed elegantly with deadly precision, appearing like a Grim Reaper that was clad in red. She swung left and right, vertically and horizontally, diagonal, in all directions. With each shot she fired, a Grimm was either killed directly by a bullet or a forceful swing powered by the gunshots. Limbs were severed and heads were decapitated. Holes would be blasted into their torsos and skulls, tearing through flesh. With each kill she made, Ruby performed a feat that even a decorated acrobat couldn't do.

Such as how she killed two Grimm simultaneously, in a fashion similar to her fifth kill today. As a Grimm was swiping her claws at her, and another behind the first Grimm approaching fast, she hooked her attacker into the crook of her weapon and fired. Not only did the force of the blast help her weapon to cleave the first in two, from the waist up, the bullet fired had pierced the second directly into the abdomen.

 _"Double kill! Nice~!"_ Ruby happily thought. Two more Grimm were fast approaching her. Thinking quickly, she leapt over both of them, effortlessly dodging their attacks. They had their chance, now it's her move. She easily executed the first in three moves, severing its left arm, leg, and slicing its stomach open. The second attempted to taker her by surprise, but Ruby was faster. She hooked the beast in the crook of Crescent Rose, the third time she done that technique today. She rolled under the Grimm and jumped, hopping on to the back of the animal. Now that her weapon was positioned so that the blade was facing the Grimm's throat, she pulled the trigger. The beast was instantly decapitated, but the force of the blast flung Ruby into the sky. Taking notice of her, three Grimm leapt up into the air towards her. The strength in their muscle propelled them just as high as Ruby currently was.

 _"Alright, three at once!"_ she mentally observed. _"Here I go!"_ Raising her scythe above her, she fired, pushing her down towards the first. In a spinning arc, she slashed the first beast across the chest, then pointed the muzzle of the rifle towards its head, and fired, instantly blowing its brains out.

"One…" Ruby counted off the first kill.

The force of the blast propelled her into the air further but for a moment. As she descended, she fired into the second creature. The force of the gunshot once again kept her airborne.

"Two…" She counted again.

As she started to descend again, the third was practically flying towards her. With a quick swing of her weapon however, she severed its arm off from the shoulder. This time, however, she did not fire her weapon, her descent now being permanent.

"Three… Ah!"

To her misfortune, there was an unexpected fourth. Once she was in range during her descent to the ground, the fourth Grimm swiped its massive paw at her. Thankfully, Ruby brought up her weapon in time to block it. The beast's claws clanged against the shaft of the weapon, but its strength alone was enough to knock Ruby back a long distance. While she was midflight from being thrown back, Ruby used her weapon to score the ground a third time, skidding for a moment, then came to a halt. She looked up from her position…

Lo and behold, she saw a third wave of Newborn Grimm.

"Oh~ geez… that's a lot of Grimm…" She muttered in dread. She could have sworn that there were only three to four left! Where did these Grimm come from?!

 _"Okay, don't freak out, there's more of them but I can beat them easily… I think."_ Despite her confidence and skill, her energy was starting to fade. She felt exhausted and she was quite low on aura. She was also low on ammo, only having one cartridge left. Fighting the Grimm for an unknown period of time would do that to an individual. However, she had to put any thought of rest to the side. She was in a battle where her life was on the line and that was all she could focus on right now. Ruby released the empty ammo cartridge in her weapon, the piece falling to the snowy ground. She took the next cartridge her side, looking at it with some reluctance. _"I might have to use this."_

The red cartridge in her hand had an emblem of four arrows facing inward, pointing to a filled-in circle – it was the symbol for Gravity Dust. Many forms of Dust contained nature's elemental powers, but Gravity Dust was special. Hence its name, it was able to manipulate gravity. One who uses Gravity Dust can alter the gravity around; they could jump higher, run faster, even float. Ruby had never used it before and, quite frankly, it scared her. What was going to happen? How fast would she go? Would she only end up hurting herself? These questions plagued her mind each moment she would lay her eyes on this certain material.

Unfortunately, she can't hold back from using this. The third wave was approaching her fast, the Grimm closest to her was eager and craving for a meal. Ruby casted her doubts aside by shaking of her head, and donning a determined look towards the enemy. She loaded the Gravity Dust cartridge into Crescent Rose, a satisfying snap meant its locked into place. She bent into a crouch, and held her weapon in a position so that its blade and muzzle of the gun was behind her. The Grimm were stampeding towards her, and she was ready. The Grimm at the head of the pack was coming closer; Ruby's finger was over the trigger. She was going to pull it.

 ***WHOMP***

Just then, a dark body landed harshly into the ground between her and the Grimm, the object pluming a cloud of snow from the sudden crash. The Grimm stopped out of curiosity, and Ruby stopped herself from pulling the trigger, confused by the abrupt incident. The snow cloud cleared out to reveal… only a Grimm. Or what remained of it. It was badly beaten, its hair disheveled, and limbs in awkward and unsettling positions, clearly broken. Its jaw was broken to the degree of looking like poorly butchered meat, and its snout seemed to be smashed in to the point of being seemingly inverted. Red blood was pouring out of its open wounds. The worst of it though was it seemed to be barely alive. Its body was convulsing and twitching, almost violently. Whatever attacked this Grimm, it must have struck it so fast and in numerous times, that the Grimm hasn't yet realized that it was dying, or already dead.

Finally, the broken and bloody mess of a Grimm stopped convulsing, the battered beast breathed its last, and began to dissipate, like any of the other Grimm that has died this day.

 **Rrowwrrr?** One of the Grimm growled questioningly.

"Huh?" Ruby herself questioned. Was something else here that was fighting the Grimm? Or… someone? Just then, she heard distant, bestial grunts of pain. She looked up to see one of the most astonishing things she would ever witness. In the background, one by one, each of the fourth wave's Newborn were flung into the air by an unknown, incredibly strong force. Their bodies were limp, moving like ragdolls in the air. Ruby could faintly see one or more impressions on their bodies, shaped like a fist. She could also hear something else, it was distinct from the Grimm. It almost sounded like a word. It somewhat sounded like this:

 _"Muda…"_ … Whatever that meant, Ruby didn't have the slightest clue.

The Beowolf at the head of the pack picked up on the commotion. The mysterious force was coming closer, more Grimm being flung high into the air. The lead Grimm turned its head behind it –

 ***POW***

Almost immediately, a fist smashed into its face. The force, energy, and velocity of the punch was unfathomable, and the result of its contact with the Grimm was gruesome. The side of its face was practically smashed in, its left eye squished and popped out of its socket. It was thrown at an incredible speed from the force alone, its soaring body just barely crashing into Ruby, who was staring at the event with wide, dilated eyes. The beast soared for another moment before violently crashing into a tree, the force of the collision having uprooted it. Ruby turned to where it landed.

"Wha-?! … What was that?!" She blurted out. She's never seen anything like this! What in Dust's name could have enough strength to do… that?! She turned her head to see the culprit…

and seeing it made sense. Of course this thing, this **ability** , could pull this feat off.

Standing before her… no, _floating_ actually. Floating before her was what could be easily identified as a **Stand**.

On Remnant, once an individual unlocked their aura, they basically have the choice between two abilities. There was the common ability of the semblance, which was what Ruby had… and there was the rare ability of a Stand. Stands were much more complex to master, stranger to behold, and their unpredictable abilities were bizarre, compared to semblances which usually have a more natural ability. What's more was that stands came in corporeal forms, like humanoids or something else. A stand was a more rare sight on Remnant though, because they are much harder to develop than a semblance, and that it would kill a considerable amount of one's aura to summon a stand. Yet, they existed nonetheless.

The stand before her was rather slim, but powerful and… beautiful, in a sense. It was almost completely gold in color, with some contrasts of white and green. It was decorated with eight green and black ladybugs, two placed evenly across its chest, hands, waist, and ankles. Attached to the waist were loosely hanging slings, like those of suspenders, and a stylized wing on its shoulders. The top of its head formed a helmet like cap with curved marks engraved on it. Its face had no nose and green eyes that appeared almost like ribbed glass, with markings shaped like the letter J coming down the sides of its face. Ruby looked in awe at the golden being of power. Just then, what came next would be the biggest surprise for her today.

"It has been a long time… Ruby Rose."

Ruby gasped. Who spoke just now? Who was it that… knew her name? She looked to the stand for the answer, but it hadn't made a sound since it appeared. Suddenly, it began to dissipate, the energy of its physical being starting to fade into… someone. It was the stand's user, calling the stand back to themselves. Ruby didn't know how she saw them at first, but she put that thought to the side as she took in the strange new arrival.

He was a boy. He was of an average height, possibly the same height as Ruby or taller. He was of a slim athletic build, similar to his stand, and has white, lightly tanned skin. His eyes were a vibrant blue and his hair a golden blonde. His hair was an interesting spectacle – the back slightly spiked up, a short braided tail that Ruby almost couldn't see, and three O's styled from his hair hanging over his forehead.

He wore a dark blue two piece suit, that had a glossy texture and appeal to it, with some gold outlining. The jacket had an open heart shape over his chest, revealing no shirt but his slightly toned muscle. Like some decorations on his stand, the boy's collar had stylized wings sown into it and a trio of ladybugs on his jacket – two on either side of his chest, and one just below the zipper. His pants had no such decorations, and he wore green shoes, each having the ladybug emblem on them.

If Ruby had to be honest, the boy appeared to be a bit flamboyant. Yet, for some reason, the young man pulled of the look very well, looking somewhat attractive.

"About two years have passed," He spoke again, speaking as if he knew Ruby personally. "Hasn't it?"

Two years? Ruby couldn't what he meant for the life of her. Just how did this young man know her? How could he possibly assume they haven't seen each other for… two years…? Something was wrong. Everything seemed odd about this. Not because he was a stranger who came out of nowhere though… but because something about him was familiar to Ruby. She decided to pry for his identity. She had to know who was this instant.

"Do… do I know you?" She cautiously asked. There was a short moment of silence before he answered.

"I didn't expect that you would recognize me now, of all times…" He replied. As Ruby heard his voice, something clicked in her mind.

 _"Wait… that voice sounds familiar…"_ The serious, calm, and even charismatic tone of his voice. It was all so familiar to her! _"But how? … No, it couldn't be!"_

"Perhaps this will help?" The boy continued. His left hand reached into his pocket, rummaged for a quick second, and pulled his hand, closed into a relaxed fist. He reached out with his arm and slowly opened his fingers, his palm facing up to the sky. As his hand was opening, something seemed to grow up. Miraculously, a flower appeared in the middle of his flat, open palm. It was a rose, but what was truly special about the flower were its two colors – gold and red. About half of the rose's petals were a brilliant red and the other half a shimmering gold. The different colored petals had mingled with each other, creating a visual swirl of color in the flower. Upon seeing this flower, Ruby gasped loudly. She instantly recognized it.***

Thus, she instantly recognized him.

 _"It is!"_ she quickly thought before speaking again. "GIORNO~?!" She called out. Upon hearing this name, his apparent identity, the boy's serious gaze shifted… into a small, caring smile.

"It's wonderful to see you again, Ruby." He said warmly. At that point, she didn't need any more proof than that. Giorno Giovanna was back. The boy Ruby cherished as her very first friend has now returned, now grown into a young adult like her. With their long-awaited reunion finally at hand, Ruby reacted in the best way that was natural to her.

"EEEEEEEEEEEKKK~!"

She squealed like a fangirl, and proceed use her semblance to get closer to him. She collided into Giorno with a tackle hug, tightly wrapping her arms around his neck and shoulders. The affectionate attack really caught him by surprise and knocked the wind out of him from the collision. He almost fell down from the force, but he caught himself and kept his bearings.

"R-Ruby?!" He blurted her name in questioning shock.

"Giorno~~~! I can't believe you came back and that it's really you!" She excitedly exclaimed, "It'syouit'syouit'syouit'syouit'syouit'syouit'sreallyyou~!" And proceeded to repeat that 'it's him' without taking a breath.

Though her restlessly repeated statement irked him a bit, he put that personal peeve to the side, remembering the kind of hyper-active person Ruby is, and knowing the situation they were in right now. "Ruby, maybe now is not the time for–!"

"But I've missed you~!" She interrupted, slightly pulling away from Giorno to show him her face, which was currently displaying an adorable frown and a set of watery puppy-dog eyes. It was an infamous technique that anyone could use, if they were immature and desperate enough. Now Giorno wasn't one to give in to immature looks but… even if he hadn't seen her for two whole years, he inevitably relented.

"… Well, maybe for a short moment." He said with a chuckle, and returned the excited girl's embrace, lightly wrapping his own arms around her waist.

She smiled brightly and elatedly yelled out, "YAY~~!" And returned to their hug, drawing herself closer to him and resting her chin on the crook of his neck, over his right shoulder. Everything felt like eternal bliss for Ruby.

… Until she was reminded of a certain enemy.

Before she could blink, one of the Newborn Beowolves was upon them. Its left arm seemed to be damaged, but the rest of its body was unscathed. It glowered at them with an intense fury, angered over the fact that these mortals had basically forgotten the battle with itself and its brethren. It was angry, it was hungry, and it was going to satisfy both of those feelings. It roared with all its energy and raised its right paw to make a clean swipe at them, aiming to slash them both in half in a single strike.

But it was hardly fast enough to even reach them.

Without saying a command or even turning his head back to look, Giorno immediately summoned his stand. The golden powerhouse didn't need any more info to know what it had to do, as it threw its fist in an uppercut at the Grimm.

 **"MUDA~!"** It roared.

The punch went straight through the beast's maw, smashing through its jaw and snout. What was left of its obliterated mouth spurted red fluid. Because the beast was a Newborn it was hardly as durable as any of the older Grimm, which was why the stand easily cleaved its snout from its head. The Grimm looked incredulously at its missing mouth before its eyes seemed to roll back, its eyelids becoming heavy, and the dark animal fell to the ground dead, beginning to dissipate. Ruby watched the entire fast-paced spectacle unfold, gazing with wide eyes in pure amazement.

"… Woah." Was all she could say, but it was enough to describe how she felt about it. Giorno turned his head to see the dissipating corpse, staring at it with an expression that was once again serious but with a hint of irritation

"Awfully rude of these beasts to interrupt." He stated disappointedly. They both relived themselves from their embrace, letting their arms fall to their sides as the two stood next to each other, and took in the state of the Grimm before them. Surprisingly, those of the fourth wave were alive, apparently surviving Giorno's onslaught. However, that didn't mean that he didn't leave his mark on the Grimm. Many of the creatures were injured, their youthful red blood leaking from the single or double impressions of his stand's fists. But here they are standing, their goal of eating the girl still in mind, and now they wanted the boy. Their trademark, hateful glares was written all over their faces.

"I guess there's more of them, huh?" Ruby stated with a nervous smile.

"It would seem so." He concurred, though he didn't return her look. "I didn't think some could even stand after bluntly taking **Gold Experience's** assault, even if I only struck them once."

Upon hearing that name, Ruby gave him a questioning look. "Who?" She asked.

" **Gold Experience** … that is my stand's identity." He clarified.

"Oh… oh yeah!" That made sense, considering it was primarily gold in color. Now that the stand was on her mind, she thought of complimenting him for it. "You have a really awesome stand–!"

"Now isn't the time to discuss that, Ruby." He sternly interrupted. His tone surprised Ruby, slightly shocking her that he interrupted her on the spot. Why did he do that just now? Ruby was going to say something, but then she remembered their current dilemma with the Grimm. Of course now wasn't a good time to talk casually, how dumb of her to forget about the Grimm.

"R-right, the Grimm… sorry." She quickly amended. Giorno took a short moment of silence before he spoke again.

"… I'm curious… what would you have done with the Grimm, if I hadn't intervened just now?" He asked. His peculiar question caused Ruby to blink at him a couple times, then answered.

"Oh, well… I was gonna load Crescent Rose with Gravity Dust. I thought that might give me a speed boost and finish the Grimm off quickly…" She answered. She was unsure of herself if she could actually pull that feat off though, knowing her current inexperience with the powerful material. "Why?"

"Because now that I know this…" He started. "I may have a plan to defeat them even quicker."

"Really?" Ruby asked with a hopeful tone.

"Yes. Using the Gravity Dust, you'll fling us both into the Grimm." He stated, revealing his plot.

"What?!"

Fling them both into the Grimm?! What kind of idea was that?! And should she mention that she never used Gravity Dust before?! This could practically get them killed! … Though she had to admit, this sounded like an awesome plan. Well, as they say, better said than done.

"A strike from both my stand and your weapon can easily eliminate them," He explained. "But what would happen if a Grimm was struck by both of us at the same time?"

"… Uh~…" Obviously, Ruby didn't have a clue.

"I'm not sure either. I'd imagine the results would be destructive."

Ruby wasn't sure what to think about this. One the one hand, it could be a spectacular way to eliminate the remaining Grimm forces. On the other hand… there was still her inexperience. She just wasn't sure what to do. Don't get her wrong, she would love to go through with this route of action. She was incredibly confident in her skills with slaying the Grimm. This was different though; she almost doesn't know how she would react while using Gravity Dust, let alone using it with another person. Without her confidence, what good would she be against the Grimm? She wondered if there were any alternate methods and chose to question Giorno's plan.

"Yeah but, is that really smart?" She inquired. "How can we even manage this? I mean, Gravity Dust is like really, really, _really_ dangerous–!"

"There isn't any time to argue this." He stated bluntly, reminding them of the approaching Grimm. "Trust me on this."

That last sentence, a sincere request on his behalf, caught Ruby's full attention. 'Trust'… maybe that's what they needed. If she could trust him, and he trusted her back, they just might pull off their over-the-top plan of action. Besides, it does take two to tango. Ruby looked to the Grimm, concerned that they were getting closer, despite their slow pace due to their injuries. She then turned back to Giorno, who in turn was looking at her with a still-serious expression, but Ruby saw a hint of anticipation in his eyes. Realizing their current lacking of other options, she made her decision.

"… Alright… just hang on to me."

Giorno nodded, agreeing to her caution. He opened his right hand, waiting for Ruby to grab it with her left. She looked to it with some hesitance, but she knew it had to be done. She took hold of his hand, gripping it tightly. Ruby once again positioned Crescent Rose behind them, her finger over the trigger. They positioned themselves with their knees bent, as if they were preparing to jump.

She pulled the trigger, and in a flash they were off.

The two soared at an incredible speed, nothing that they could have ever perceived as possible until this very moment. To them, it felt like they were going faster than the speed of light, like a brokenly-powerful stand with a speed beyond even A-rank classification. It took all of the willpower and strength the youths had to keep hold of each other. If they were to let go of each other now, it would be disastrous.

They were immediately in front of the first three Grimm. With their wits and rationality still intact, Giorno summoned Gold Experience and Ruby prepped her weapon, both ready to strike. The golden stand launched its fist and ruby swung her scythe. The result was bloody, but efficient – the fist had smashed through their heads in one strike, effectively obliterating their skulls into nothingness, and Ruby's Crescent Rose had swiped through them, cleanly cutting through their abdomens and severing them in half.

Ruby fired another shot of Gravity Dust behind them, keeping up their speed. Soon, they found themselves running across the snow, maintaining their incredible speed. Briefly, Ruby took a glance at Giorno, wondering how he was handling with their speed. He seemed to be adapting to it soundly, showing no signs that his body was under stress from the speed. She was doing fine herself, considering speed was her specialty, despite never going as fast as this. Giorno returned her glance, his stand seeming to have looked to her as well. Seeing that they both were serious about this, Ruby nodded and fired another shot. With their speed doubling they soared off the ground. Ruby held her weapon behind her, her arms and scythe behind her head. It was hard to hold it with one hand, but she held onto it with a firm grip.

The Grimm looked onto their targets with pure befuddlement. How were their prey able to move so fast? It all seemed hopeless for these Newborns, their lives would end after an incredibly short time after these two were done with them. Just then, Ruby's weapon went through another transformation, only smaller. The full blade of the scythe shifted, no longer making a 90 degree angle with the shaft, but aligning itself with the straight direction of the shaft's shape and structure. Crescent Rose was now in its war scythe variant form. They charged into the Grimm and all hell was let loose, if it hadn't already.

Their final display of combat skills were phenomenal. Each of her slashes and his blows hit their mark, easily murdering each of the Newborn Beowolves. None of the demons could withstand their hits a second time, succumbing to a painful death and their bodies dissipating. What was most astonishing of their kills, though, was that with each Grimm, they had struck and killed them… together. Giorno's Gold Experience would throw a punch so fast and strong, it would discombobulate a Grimm severely, if the blow hadn't killed it first, and a swipe from Ruby's Crescent Rose would slice through the beast, ending its existence. Each of their kills by combined effort were spectacular and incredibly fast paced, and each Grimm's flesh was tattered and beaten by godlike fists, and slashed by sharp and enhanced steel.

The last Grimm was killed brutally, Gold Experience throwing it's fist down into its skull, and Ruby firing her last round of Gravity Dust into its body, blowing it to bloody pieces. After the last kill, both Ruby and Giorno jumped backwards, spun midair, and landed in a pose – something rather flashy for their day of brutal killing of Grimm. Ruby posed by positioning Crescent Rose behind her, resting it on the back of her shoulder. Her right arm bent and her hand holding the lower half of the shaft, and left arm laying over the weapon's upper shaft.

Giorno stood in a slightly sensual pose, his right hand grabbing the open heart of his jacket and pulling on it, his left hand grabbing and pulling down on the bottom of the jacket, and his legs spread far apart. His stand, Gold Experience, had mostly faded into him and was partially showing, its head and right shoulder visible, though Giorno's braid was positioned to slightly cover Gold Experience's face. As they posed, the shells of Ruby's Gravity Dust bullets started to rain behind them… and there were a lot.

Not a single Grimm was in sight. They won the day's battle.

Ruby was completely exhausted, thankful that everything was now over. She ceased from standing in her pose, taking her weapon off her should as it relaxed, and she exhaled heavily. "… That was probably the most reckless thing I've done yet." She tiredly claimed.

Giorno looked to her with some sympathy, knowing it was a plan that could have been consequential for the both of them. "I will admit, the idea was drastic but–"

"BUT IT WAS SO AWESOME~!" She suddenly shouted, throwing her arms un in the air with great enthusiasm. It appeared that somehow, her energy had returned to her. However, she was unaware that she closely next to Giorno and had practically yelled down his ear.

"Ow." Giorno deadpanned, digging his little finger into his ear canal, checking for anything that could have been damaged by Ruby's instantaneous shout.

"I never thought I could do something like that!" She exclaimed. "I've never used Gravity Dust before, and I was super worried I was gonna mess up! But then you helped me out, and we were like PATOW~! And WATAH~!"

With the odd noises she made, Giorno let a small chuckle to escape him. "What kind of effects are those?" He asked. Upon hearing that question, it caused Ruby to blush in slight embarrassment. Her hand went to scratch the back of her hand, trying to think of what to identify those sounds she made.

"Uh… ninja noises? duh" was her answer, her tone saying that it should've been obvious. "Anyway, that was the coolest ever~! I wasn't sure about it at first, but you came up with a really amazing idea, Giorno!"

"Well, it wouldn't have come to fruition without you." He replied, nonchalant but confident. Looking at Ruby, Giorno saw that her response was blank at first, her eyes blinking wildly at him and her mouth slightly open. She wasn't expecting the compliment apparently, to his confusion. Her cheeks slowly brightened into a rosy red color from the rush of blood, and she bashfully looked the other way.

"Oh, stop! Heheh!" She proclaimed with a giggle, more to Giorno's confusion.

"What?" He asked for clarification.

"Y-you're just saying that!" She accused, though in Girono's mind, he couldn't distinguish her tone as playful or serious.

"Ruby, I'm serious. I couldn't have done it without you." He stated. Ruby then looked back to him, her expression showing slight surprise and her eyes blinking once or twice.

"Really?" She asked him.

"Of course." He confirmed, and he gave a short smile in hopes of looking more convincing. Thankfully, it appeared to work, as Ruby then gave a bigger, brighter smile.

"Thanks~!" Ruby happily chirped, then gasped as she apparently realized something. "Oh my gosh, it's been so long!" She took step closer, and looked directly into his face.

"You've got to tell me everything!" Giorno looked at her confusedly, wondering about what she was referring to.

"About what?" He asked.

"Like where you went, what you were doing, or maybe you saw something cool!" She clarified. Giorno swallowed nervously, though his gulp was quiet enough so that Rub couldn't it. Internally, he was concerned of what he could possibly tell her. In the time that he was gone, he had… taken part, let's say, of something that he currently did not want Ruby to know about.

"Well… I haven't done that much–" He started.

"Will you please tell me everything you did while you were gone?" Ruby eagerly interrupted. "I want to know! Please~?"

Giorno once again felt nervous, but he hid those feelings behind figuratively, slightly cracked mask of sternness. He closed his eyes, took a near-quiet deep breath, and looked to Ruby warmly, with a small smile gracing his lips.

"… Alright, I'll tell you everything I can remember." He said, to her exuberance.

"Yay~!" Ruby happily squeaked and returned to embracing Giorno, who then returned the hug. It was a pure, blissful moment for the two long lost friends. It could have lasted forever, and neither of them would have objected to that kind of fate.

Unfortunately, it couldn't last.

To Giorno's surprise, he saw one more Grimm. Ruby couldn't see from her position in their embrace, her back facing it, nor could she hear because this Grimm was being particularly quiet. This Grimm seemed to almost unscathed, miraculously, with only some rustled fur. It did have one blatantly visible wound however – the left side of its skull dented and its left eye hanging out of the socket by a sinewy string of flesh. It was the last Grimm Giorno had attacked when he making his way to Ruby.

Before Giorno could react, the Beowolf leapt towards them, it's right arm raised up. He didn't have the time to comprehend how it was alive or how it still had so much energy; time seemed to slow for him during this crucial moment. Knowing the danger Ruby was in with her back facing the Grimm, he had to act on the first action that he could think of. He threw Ruby off of him, the red-clad girl confused by the sudden action. Though he succeeded in saving Ruby, Giorno wasn't fast enough to avoid injury

The beast land in front of Giorno and swung down with its claws, slashing his right arm. It tore through his sleeve and cut the skin deeply, drawing fresh blood. Giorno growled loudly in pain, dropped to one knee and clutched his bleeding arm. As soon as Ruby fell to the ground from Giorno's push, she turned to see him injured, fallen before the evil creature. Any confusion she had suddenly turned to fear for friend.

"Giorno!" She called out in concern.

Giorno grunted out of pain, before he looked to the Grimm. It had a satisfied look on its face, content with its act of revenge on the one who bashed its eye in. Giorno challenged it with an expression of stern anger.

" **Gold Experience**!" He commanded, and his stand appeared in a flash.

Remembering the golden being who struck and disfigured it, the Newborn roared fiercely at the stand. Of course, Gold experience paid its intimidation no heed as it launched an uppercut into the creature's gut. It gasped and coughed up spittle, shocked that the stand moved so quickly. The Grimm fell to the ground, clutching its stomach, apparently fatigue was catching up with it, thanks to it wounds. The beast weakly looked up at the stand, which had an expression that was wrought with an angered sneer. Seeing that it was clearly outmatched, the Grimm hoped that was the only strike the being was going to give it.

But that single strike was only a sample of the pain the Grimm was about to feel.

 **MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA! MUDA~!**

Gold Experience wailed on the final Newborn, smashing it into the ground with each fist it struck into the beast. A cloud of snow began to form from the stand's erratic barrage. The moment he felt it was finished, Giorno used a single thought to order Gold Experience cease its attack. The cloud of snow cleared away to reveal a bloody mess of the animal, completely unrecognizable. The last of the Newborns died in pain and its body started to dissipate. With the threat finally gone, Giorno called off his stand and continued tending to his wound. Ruby rushed over to him in a worried state.

"Giorno, you're hurt!" She stated… though it was obvious.

"I'm… well aware."

"Let's get you to my Dad, quick!" Said Ruby, having thought of a plan. "He'll definitely have first aid stuff –!"

"That will not be necessary." He claimed. Confused, Ruby pried for what he meant.

"But–!"

"Just watch, Ruby." He stated, and Gold Experience once again appeared by his side. The stand looked around them, and its gaze found something – a bullet shell that was one of Ruby's, a convenient two feet away. The stand went to pick it up, Ruby viewing the stand's actions with some befuddlement. Gold Experience then came back to Giorno and took a hard look at his wound. The stand would do something that was utterly shocking to Ruby; with all of its might and speed, Gold Experience shoved the she into Giorno's arm. He grunted in pain, and Ruby gasped again in concern.

"Giorno, what are you doing?!" She asked him incredulously. "Are you al-… right…?"

Now Ruby couldn't be more puzzled than now. Before her eyes, the shell and Giorno's flesh seems to glow, then morph into each other. The bullet shell transformed from steel into the skin and blood of Giorno's body. He grunted in pain again, but the process was immediately over and the arm looked in healthy, undamaged condition. Ruby was beyond astonished.

"This is **Gold Experience**." He stated, gaining Ruby's attention. "My stand can grant life to all."

"Life…?" Ruby inquired. She was still confused, but she seemed to be in awe of hearing such an ability.

"Yes. It can create a small animal from any object, such as a beetle from a bullet or a frog from a suitcase." Giorno explained, giving rather bizarre examples of his power. "In this case, **Gold Experience** can use that ability to heal the skin over the cuts on my arm. It isn't meant for healing though, so the process is a painful one."

Hearing what his stand was capable, Ruby couldn't feel any more amazed. A stand that could heal and create living things? Ruby hadn't heard of such a beautiful stand. Not even a semblance could be capable of such a versatile gift. That was the greatest difference between a stand and a semblance – their abilities. One was a power that could be extremely adaptable when used correctly, while the other was rather practical and could be used as a last resort. It was one of these times when Ruby wished she had a stand, though she wouldn't replace her semblance with anything else at this point.

"… That is so cool." She exclaimed, brimming with joy. However, just saying that was not enough to express her amazement. Ruby turned to Gold Experience itself and gave it a well-deserved compliment. "You're so cool."

Upon being addressed by someone who wasn't its master, the stand looked at her. It gave a small smile and the nod of its head, elating Ruby that it gave her a reply of its own fashion. After doing so, Gold Experience proceeded to fade back into its user, no longer needed at the moment. The two youths stood up, Ruby still looking at Giorno's healed arm.

"What about your sleeve?" She asked him, seeing that the cloth was still severely tattered.

"The ability doesn't affect clothing," he answered. "Unless I wanted to make animals out of my clothes. But that action wouldn't turn out so well for me."

Ruby giggled at the thought of his shirt turning into some sort of animal and leaving him bare. "Heh, yeah, that'd probably be… bad…"

Noticing her sentence fade out, Giorno looked at Ruby, curious of what was wrong. He saw her looking at his left arm. Her eyes narrowed onto his limb with pure focus, and slowly her expression unraveled to shock.

"Ruby? What is it?" Giorno asked. She did not answer right away, kindling some concern from him. She slowly brought her head up to look at him, dead in the eye, with an almost unreadable expression but showed some fear.

"… Giorno… what is this?" She pried, her tone strangely cold.

"What?" Confused, Giorno looked to his arm… and his blood ran cold. On Giorno's left arm, visible through the torn sleeve of his jacket, was a tattoo. It was dark pink in color, and resembled a flower. It was stylized, some of the petals spaced out from each other and the other, unidentifiable parts of the strange flower. This was a Passion flower. Giorno mentally cursed himself for forgetting that he had **their** emblem forever emblazoned into his left arm.

"Giorno… is this what I think it is?" She asked another question. Apparently, she knew what this symbol meant. He did not answer, only gazing at his arm with a stunned expression. His eyes were wide but his mouth closed. His lack of an answer irked Ruby.

"Giorno, answer me–!"

"Your father… Taiyang." He interrupted, Giorno took a step away from Ruby and surveyed the dead forest around them. "Which way is his and your cottage?"

"Hey! Don't change the subject–!"

"It has been two years, remember?" He interrupted again, taking a few more steps away from her. "I'd like to greet him, and possibly Yang as well. Oh, and is Josuke here too–?"

"GIORNO GIOVANNA, ARE YOU A GANGSTER?!"

…

He was caught. There was no way out of this. He panicked at first, he tried to change the subject, and he tried to cover it with his two year absence. But he failed to hide the truth and he knew it. Now, he had face the music.

Giorno stood there for a moment, then took a deep, loud breath, in and out. The noise of his breath was audible. He finally turned to Ruby and donned his usual mask that was void of emotion but the usual austerity.

"Yes… I am working for Passione." He admitted. Ruby gasped in surprise, even though she was quite sure that she knew the answer.

"… But… but you…" She couldn't comprehend it, she just couldn't. For the life of, she could never understand why the person she held closest to her was involved with such an organization. In her desperation to understand, she inquired him of his affiliations.

"Why?!" She desperately demanded. He took a moment before he spoke again.

"… Ruby… how much do you know about Passione?" He asked out of curious interest. Realizing that the tables were turned on her, she mentally scrambled for an answer.

"Um… only that they're… the biggest meanies in the world!"

"…" Was her answer. Giorno raised an eyebrow out of puzzlement.

"… Dad doesn't tell me much about them." She painfully admitted. Yes, she knew what Passione was, but she hardly knew what they were infamous for. She watched news reports of their crimes behind her father's back, when she was younger. When she would ask about them, Taiyang would only brush it. Yang wouldn't budge for an answer either. The best she could figure out about them was the reports constantly showing the emblem of Passione, which was how she recognized the tattoo on Giorno's arm.

"Well… he's rather protective of you, if he hasn't told you anything." He stated, thinking deductively on the reasons why he told her so little about them.

"But Giorno, why are you with them? They turn people into murderers!" She claimed. Upon hearing this, Giorno did something she never expected to hear out of him: He chuckled. Darkly.

"Heh… that's a pretty ironic statement." He also claimed.

"Huh?"

"The people who join Passione were already killers from the start." His morbid statement disturbed Ruby, never having wanted to hear such a thing.

"But… but you haven't killed anyone, right? Giorno?" She asked hopefully. To her fearful disappointment, Giorno did not confirm her question verbally. Instead, he did not look at her, his eyes now looking downward. To Ruby, this was a clear sign of what this meant.

"… No… no, you haven't… you couldn't…"

"I have…" He admitted.

"But… but you regretted it… right?"

"… No."

Ruby couldn't believe what she just heard. She practically was listening to someone confess to murder – her friend, no less. It was official: Ruby Rose was friends with a gangster and a murderer, the greatest evils she could ever comprehend in her lifetime.

"… Why?" She asked again, but with a little more volume. "Why would you do such a thing?! Why are you with THEM?!"

"So that I may be able to change them." He confidently answered.

"… What?" Asked Ruby, once again dazed and confused by his words.

"Ruby… do you have a dream?" Giorno asked her. "A desire for what you will become in the future? The mark you will leave on the world around you?" His peculiar question caught Ruby off-guard, though it did not derail her from the matter at hand.

"Um… yeah?" She answered, unsure of what he was aiming to prove.

"What is your dream?" He pried.

"T-to be a Huntress, of course!" She stated. "That's what I told you, remember?" She was starting to think that he had forgotten their special interactions, all those years ago.

"I do remember." He said. She was relieved that he did, but that left something uncovered in this situation

"But that's what you wanted to be too… right?" She asked him. If he did not, then why did he join Signal with her in the first place? A combat school that was meant to get them ready for actual huntsman academies?

"In a sense… but something more." He clarified. "Something that truly spews influence."

"… So… your dream is being a gangster? Do you actually like it?" She inquired of him, bitter that this was what he really wanted as a profession

"There's nothing good or influential about my current position." He retorted. "It is what I aim to be that is much more."

"And what's that?" She asked, slightly less bitter.

"To be the head of Passione."

"HUH~?!" Needless to say, the revelation of Giorno's true goal shocked her to her very core.

"Ruby, let me explain–" He tried to expand, but Ruby interrupted.

"Y-y-you want to be a… a… A GANG–STAR?!"

…

"… A what?"

Oh dear Dust, why did she have to say such a thing?

"L-like a superstar combined with a gangster…" She explained haphazardly, nervously twiddling her thumbs. "… A super gangster… or something."

"… The term would simply be 'Boss,' Ruby." He corrected. "I'd be the boss of Passione."

"Yeah, well… I… still don't know much about them." She reiterated.

"Perhaps I should tell you then." He assumed. Upon hearing this, Ruby was afraid. She was sure that the mafia group had done a many terrible atrocities but she didn't want to know. They could be just too horrible for her to comprehend. The curiosity would bite at her, but she pushed those feelings away.

"I don't know if I want to know more." She retorted, fearful of what he would tell her. Giorno gave a somewhat sympathetic look, but he was going through with his conviction to inform her about Passione.

"Ruby, if you want to understand my intentions, then hear me out… please." He said. His plead had gotten to her.

She sighed heavily, eventually agreeing to hear him out. It wasn't going to be pretty, but if he was going to understand his intentions, she might as well listen. "… Alright."

"… The Passione Mafia is arguably the most dangerous force on Remnant." He started. "Their organization consists entirely of stand users, all 757 including myself. Aside from their control over various hotels and restaurants, they have been influencing political figures, committing innumerable crimes, and have been rumored to be funding the White Fang."

"But… doesn't the White Fang refuse support from non-Faunus now?" Ruby asked, confused that the all-Faunus terrorist group has taken funds from what was likely a group whose majority of its members were human.

"Not all of Passione's members are human but, either way, it would be unwise for the White Fang to refuse funding. They want weapons now that they're violent, and from who else could they get the money?" He rhetorically questioned. It made sense, since they likely had to restart their initiative, once the White Fang had become what it is today. "But that's not Passione's worst offense."

"Huh? Then what is?"

In response, Giorno only reached into right pocket. He dug into it before pulling out his hand. In his open was a small, white object. It looked like a piece of paper, wrapped around something. Ruby looked at with some confusion, but she took the object out of his hand, taking a closer look at it. She gripped it between her thumb and index finger, turning each side to figure out what it was and what it meant.

"What is this?" She finally asked, having been unable to deduce the object.

"A drug."

Hearing his answer, Ruby yelped and immediately dropped the now-identified object, a potentially harmful concoction. The piece fell to the ground, almost blending in with the snow. Giorno bent down to take back the drug.

"Passione is infamous in the drug trade," He explained the drug's relation with the stand-user mafia, "close to being labeled as the kingpin of it. They sell a multitude of illegal narcotic, like Dust powder laced with nicotine or volatile medications. The worst product they vend is their own concoction right here – _Passiflora Indomabile_ , the drug of passion."****

"… Passi-… In-dumb… w-what?" Having never heard the odd name before, for a drug no less, Ruby had no idea how to pronounce it. Realizing that she couldn't after her garbled attempt to say it, Giorno realized she wanted him to…

Repeat himself.

He was only doing it this once because she was his friend. He took a loud, deep breath to steel himself from making his opinion known about repeating himself. " _Passiflora… Indomabile_." He stated, slowly iterating each syllable, hoping that she could understand.

"… I'm sorry, could you spell it out?" She asked innocently. To her unknowing misfortune, his personal peeve got the better of him.

"Actually, I'd rather not." He stated firmly. "I already repeated myself once."

"Um… O… kay?"

"Back to the matter at hand. It's a drug created from actual Passion flower and some unknown component, likely another drug. It's effects are comparable to ecstasy, making one feel intense pleasure and heightened sense… but an overdose can lead to death while sleeping."

"Only when they're sleeping? That's horrible!"

"It is, and the fatality rates from this drug is higher than any other… but those statistics does not stop Passione from selling it, nor does it stop addicts from purchasing. The worst of it all is that Passione targets children and young teens as the consumers."

Ruby gawked at the horrible information. "They force drugs on CHILDREN?! Why are they so awful?!"

"Because there are awful people out there, Ruby." He answered her, knowing the truth. "Disgusting people who would do anything heinous, as long as it heightens their status."

"But… what about you?" She asked him. It was a viable question, and she felt it was time for him to explain why he was a part of this in the first place. "Where do you stand in all of this?"

"… I want to eliminate the evils of Passione." He revealed his ultimate goal. "They do nothing to help our world, only spreading death. I cannot stand for that. The moment I become the Boss, I will not hesitate to eradicate the Passion drug and cut any and all ties with the White Fang."

"But… Why do you kill people, like they do?" She asked. This was her strongest concern about his situation, utterly befuddled as to why he

"… Ruby… take this flower for example." Giorno knelt down as he said this. His right hand dug into the snow and touched the ground. Right then and there, his hand started to glow, indicating that he was using his stand's ability. In a few seconds, a beautiful, fully grown flower sprouted from where his hand was. As it stopped blooming, he deactivated his stand and he picked the flower out of the ground. He brought it up for the both of them to see.

"It might not show it, but it is something that is full of life. Life is the greatest gift that anyone or anything could have. But many do not value the lives of others, as you and I do." He explained while gazing at his creation, garnering a feeling akin to inspiration out of the girl. Giorno then took his eyes off the flower to look at her, wearing a determined expression. "Ruby, you mistake my killing of such people, those who take life, for the slaughter of innocents, the people who deserve life. I can assure you that I have only committed the latter."

Ruby looked at him in awe… but not a typical kind of "awe." She looked to him in an amalgamation of admiration and fear. She felt admiration because it was hard not to see him as such a charismatic person, with some of the purest ideals one could ever have. But it was flawed, to Ruby at least. He still admitted to killing, and that was something Ruby could not particularly stand for. What made her afraid was that it was her friend that admitted to murder, something she'd never thought to have experienced.

"But… but killing is wrong, Giorno!" She argued, with hope of getting through to him. "Even if you are killing bad people, it doesn't make anything better!"

"… Perhaps it doesn't…" He admitted, catching Ruby off guard that he agreed with her on that. "But when it comes to protecting others from the likes of Passione's members, who enjoy killing, then I would do what I believe is necessary." His conviction towards this was strong. It was obvious that she couldn't change his mind on this, and she was at least thankful that he had done it in for the better, in a slightly twisted sense. But there was something that truly worried her at this point, more than anything else.

"… Giorno…" She began, her tone nervous and a little shaky. "What if someone… kills you?"

"…"

"…"

…

There was a moment of silence. Giorno was seemingly taking in what she said. The quietness concerned Ruby, leaving her without an answer and she was impatient for it. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of snow falling around them, which really meant no sound at all; and maybe the chirps of a bird in the distance.

"… It's not so bad." Giorno finally broke the silence.

"Huh?"

"Being a gangster, I mean." He clarified his vague statement. "Not every day's a game of life and death, Ruby. I've actually met some good people within the mafia… and it pays rather well, to be frank." He chuckled at the end of that sentence.

"… Still doesn't make it any better." Ruby responded, dejectedly. Giorno did not respond, seeing his attempt to change the subject and try to uplift the mood had failed. To be fair, he didn't blame her for how she felt about the entire situation.

"… Is this really how you want to help people, Giorno?" She suddenly asked him. Although, he didn't need to take any time to think of an answer.

"It is." He confirmed, to some of her dread. "I can't see any other position higher than this." She looked to him with utter worriment. It was obvious that was all she could do really – worry for him – but there was something more important that she should do. She should trust him. Even with all of her disagreement and appalling, she should trust him. She wants him to live, after all. Ruby breathed in a heavy sigh before speaking again. However, what she would say next would not be the easiest thing to do.

"… I don't like it." She admitted. "I don't like any of this one bit. I don't like crime, I don't like drugs, and I don't like killing. So I can't agree with what you are doing." Her brutal honesty hadn't phased Giorno the slightest. He merely kept his neutral expression, but his eyes conveyed that he was understanding. Suddenly, she threw a verbal curveball.

"But… the one thing I can hope for, to come out of this, is that I won't lose you. You can do that, right?" Her abrupt change with a question surprised Giorno slightly. He hadn't expected such a hopeful request after making her opinion known to him.

"Promise me that you won't die, Giorno. I only now just got you back in my life." Giorno took a moment of time to think, looking down to the snowy ground as his thoughts ran through his head.

"… I don't know if I can make promises, but I can assure you that I will survive any obstacle in my path, with **Gold Experience** by my side." He claimed.

Ruby did not move for a moment, until she released another heavy sigh, but out of relief this time, and gave him a smile out of her relief. "… So… you wanted to see Dad again, right?" She asked him, changing the subject. "I can lead you to our house. He'll be glad to see you again."

"… I would like that… thank you, Ruby." He said, his smirk still apparent, and Ruby's smile grew a little wider. The day was finally over, and they were walking to Ruby's home, side by side.

 _"I guess I can't really get him out of this, no matter how much I don't like it."_ Ruby thought, that much was obvious. _"But… there has to be another way. And I'll find it for him."_

Ruby couldn't help but think of what could have been. What if he went down a different path? The right one. The one there was no violence, no war, none of the horrors she detested. She believed that Giorno was going down a path of condemnation, but his goals, no matter how justifiable, are blinding him. She doesn't want this for her first, her closest friend. She would want him to reform Passione, that much she can agree with him. But not through the path of violence.

The truth was, she didn't believe that he could survive any of this on his own. Violence would only lead to more of it. Maybe more than he could handle. It didn't matter if he had any kind of connections within the mafia, it couldn't possibly make anything better for him as of now. She had her friend back in her life, she was not about to lose again, let alone permanently. She would do everything in her power to keep Giorno alive and to have him see the truth. She believed that much would be best for her.

As Ruby thought of what she should do to save Giorno from possible death, she glanced over to him, his right side facing her left. Her eyes moved down to his hand, and a peculiar thought came up in her mind.

 _"This was the first time… we held hands."_ She thought obscurely. Though they were close as friends, she wasn't sure if even this was appropriate for the two of them. She abandoned any forms of intimate emotion she felt a long time ago, why now was she having such thoughts of this. She focused on getting rid of them for now. She was fine with being friends, and she was certain that he felt no different. But the thoughts persisted, to her chagrin.

As she was feeling a rush of emotional confliction, Giorno had a simpler thought on his mind.

 _"'Gang-star'… that honestly sounds rather catchy. I might have to ask her if I can use that title in the future."_

While they were walking through the dead, snowy woods, something unbeknownst to them was watching from a tree branch. It was merely a crow, with feathers as black as coal and eyes a vivid red. It was no Grimm of any sort, but it almost wasn't a crow… something seemed human about it. It only watched the two youths for a couple more moments, then flew off into the sky and emitted a caw.

From this point on, a rather bizarre adventure had begun.

* * *

Author's update note, 5/26/17:

After reading my reviews and taking in some other advice, I decided to rewrite this chapter a little bit. No drastic change to the plot or action of the chapter, but there are some important changes to re-establish Ruby and Giorno's relationship somewhat, and to make them a little more in-character for this chapter. I felt that it was more important to work on the characters than on the actions anyway.

* * *

Author's note, 1/29/17:

Ugh, cheesy ending.

Anywho~… guess what? I'm the guy who took Mugiwara's challenge! For anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about: popular fanfiction author Mugiwara N0 Luffy posted a challenge last year for a crossover between RWBY and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. I had gracefully taken this challenge out of my pure interest, my sudden fondness of a pairing between Ruby and Giorno, and the many _zillions_ of ideas I came up with the moment I read his one-shot. To be fair, I did plan my own idea for a RWBY and JoJo crossover… but I kinda fell out with that. And I'm still kinda new to JoJo, having watched all four parts in the anime, but now I'm halfway through the part 3 manga. But I am an avid researcher, and I plan to iterate many of the characters of JoJo in complete faith to the source material!

So here's some notes on this chapter:

*I feel like his name is too clever for it to have come from an abusive step-parent. So for this fanfic, I felt that Giorno Giovanna giving himself that exact name would at least add on to a sort of self-independence the character has.

**Since I was technically making the first RWBY trailer canon for this fic, I devised a concept to make the prototypes for Grimm as actual Grimm, only very young and their bone protrusions haven't grown yet. That's pretty much how I interpreted them at first, until I learned the first trailer wasn't technically canon.

***That special flower's origins will be covered later on.

****I wanted to make my own kind of fictional drug, simple as that. It'll probably be used as a plot point later on.

And that's all I got. So this will pretty much be the last thing I post for a while, because of college. The best I can do is write outlines for the while. If I'm lucky, I'll try to post something during Spring break, but I'll ultimately get back to writing fanfics during the summer. And a great many thanks to Mugiwara for offering this challenge to the fandom! Ciao!

P.S. because the first four chapter are going to be the trailers, think of Ruby's POV introduction as a kind of manifesto for the chapter. It'll only be the trailers that will have this thing.


	2. Trailer 2

Ownership:

RWBY is owned by creator Monty Oum, God rest his soul, and Rooster Teeth Productions.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is owned by manga author and illustrator Hirohiko Araki.

I, the humble author of this fan-work, own absolutely nothing, gain no profit whatsoever, and wish only to express my writing and love for these fandoms artistically.

* * *

I is here. I is back. Here's some Okuyasu for y'all.

* * *

Trailer #2: White Ice Can Seal What Was Erased

It must have been a full audience tonight. Whenever she had a performance, she would wonder how many people would come. She wondered, how many was it going to be this time? How many was there just to witness her? Was there anyone fighting over a meager seat? She'd never really know, but she always knew that it would be a full house at times like this. Every time it was like this in the stadium, whenever she had a concert. She could hear all of them, chatting amongst themselves while waiting with anticipation. She could hear the gossip about her passed from person to person, even from where she was standing, behind the closed curtains.

But it did not matter what they say about her, her family, or her company. When the curtains would open, when she would walk to the center of the stage, when she would be gazed upon by thousands of eyes, none of her affiliations would matter. When she would be brought under the spotlight, when she would take a final breath and finally sing, the history of her very name would not matter. Those who came to her concerts were not there simply because of who she was; it was for the voice she had.

Her voice was like a gift from the Divine. She could sing with a serenity like that of running water from a forest spring. She could project an energetic merriment, comparable to the effects of caffeine in the morning. She could even communicate a strong and forceful message with her voice, like a bird that refused to be caged. The reputation of her beautiful voice was like a legend among the Kingdoms, for those who haven't heard her before. Those who did, however, were bewitched by such a singing talent like hers.

If one questioned how she has such a voice like that, a likely answer would be that her talent was 'given' to her… just like everything else she has in life.

Everything she gained, it was given to her. Her belongings, her talents, her physique, her very status, it was all given to her. Everything that was given to her was thanks to her family. The family that controlled the planet's most valued natural resource; the very same family that was associated with some of the shadiest business practices, all enacted by the current head of this family, which was her father, who gave her everything except one crucial thing: his affection.

Even with everything she was given, because of her affiliations with family and industry, she could give thanks for them. She could not thank the father who gave her status, who helped pass down her lineage to her, or for the skills she has. Her father was responsible for a state of dysfunction in her family; her mother driven to alcoholism, her sister running away to the military, and her brother just as insensitive as their father. She could not forget nor forgive his coldness. So, with everything she was given, even this wonderful voice she trained to sing, she could not thank her father who gave it to her.

However, if there was truly anything she could be thankful for, there was certainly something. Not 'something', as a matter of fact, but 'someone'. Someone who was indisputably the opposite of her formal, uptight family; discourteous, impulsive, and idiotic. Someone who could not think of strategy before entering a battle and may not be able to win if that someone could not use their own peculiar abilities. Someone who perfectly fit the definition of a punk.

So why would this girl be thankful to have this someone by her side? She could be thankful for this person not because her father gave him to her, but more like allow him to be there for her. This person, she felt like she earned him rather than he was given to her. However, a simpler reason was because he had been there for her. He was someone who easily spent most of his time with her during their lives, more so than many of her own blood relatives, including her family. Even though she had to be harsh on him, in order for him to survive in the realm of the nobility, to live among her rich family, he was there during her most dire times. No matter what, she could always rely on him, even for the most trivial things.

Even though she knew there were many hundreds if not thousands of people here already, filling the rows of seats in this theater, she wondered if he was among the crowds tonight. She wasn't completely sure; sometimes he was needed for certain chores around the mansion, even during events like this. She wouldn't be surprised if that was the case now. Still, she thought of him for encouragement, before she had to go out to the stage.

At this moment, she recalled a couple memories of him; one from a distant time, another from not so long ago. She wanted to push them back for now, but it seemed that her mind made them her priority now. The curtains drew up, and she could just see the innumerous people in the audience. The announcer called out her name.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome… Weiss Schnee."

* * *

 _Twelve years ago._

* * *

Rain was coming down hard, flooding the streets and the roads. Atlas was a region known for more snowy weather but when it was hot enough, there would be some chances of a cold, heavy rainfall.

The rain showered heavily over a long, elegant limousine as it drove down the watery road. Though it had a perfect polished white body paint, with a silver metal trimming, it could not be viewed in all of its glory during this weather, with no light to give the vehicle its much deserved highlights. The long car stopped, the traffic light turning red. The interior was a dark color, illuminated by small lights across the roof of the limousine. Sitting in the back seats were two very important occupants; the young Weiss Schnee, and her mother.

Weiss, at 5 years old, was in a simple dress, a white formal shirt and a blue skirt, with a string bowtie the same color as her skirt. Her snowy white hair was short, but long enough to be made into a ponytail. Mrs. Schnee wore a white shirt, parts of shoulders exposed by openings on the sleeves, with a red gemstone stitched into the neck of her shirt. Over this she wore an intricately designed blue vest, with gray metal buttons on the sides. The rest of her attire wasn't any more interesting, wearing formal dark blue pants and high heels. Her own white hair was tied into a bun, save for her bangs brushed to the left side of her face, and curled locks of hair on each side, reaching below her ears.

Little Weiss Schnee had just finished her weekly singing lessons, and Mrs. Schnee was taking her home for the day. To their inconvenience, they were stuck in this rainy weather at the moment. Mrs. Schnee was very fond of her daughter's talent, and she would notice when Weiss' voice would improve naturally while singing.

"You sounded wonderful in your lessons, Weiss," she told her young daughter. Weiss looked up to her mother in response, then looked down before speaking.

"… Father says I should improve," she said. At that, Mrs. Schnee felt a little unhappy.

Of course, her father had to leave the impression that wasn't good already. The man just has to let others know what _he_ thinks, even when it came to his own child's hobbies. The kind of personality Jacques Schnee displays was not something Mrs. Schnee approved, and she seldom wondered why she married a man like him.

Pushing the sour thoughts of her husband aside, Mrs. Schnee sighed. "Pay him no attention dear, he's too harsh on you," she told Weiss.

"What do you mean, Mother?" asked Weiss, who looked up to Mrs. Schnee in confusion. "Doesn't he want me to get better?"

Ms. Schnee hadn't thought that was how Weiss interpreted her father's criticisms. Of course, that's what any child would think if they didn't know the true nature of their parent. She looked at her young daughter for a moment, then finally answered.

"Not for the reasons you think, Weiss," was all she said, and the conversation seemed to end with that.

Weiss was still confused by what her mother meant but could only be left with the vague answers she gave. Now bored, she turned to look out the window to her right. The rain hitting the car allowed her to see nearly nothing, so she had no options of sightseeing. She supposed she could watch the rain water wash down the glass.

Suddenly, Weiss saw two images outside. One was on the ground, a shape she couldn't accurately discern. The other appeared to be a four-legged animal, posing threateningly in front of the first image. Weiss could hear barking as well.

Concerned over what was happening, Weiss turned to her mother, hoping she could make light of this. "Mother, what's happening over there?" she asked, pointing to the window.

"Hmm?" Mrs. Schnee looked to Weiss when addressed, and saw Weiss pointing to that window. She looked and saw the same shapes Weiss saw. Concerned herself, she decided that the best way to have clearer view, but still stay within the safety of the limousine, was to lower the window. It would risk getting water in, but they'd survive.

Mrs. Schnee pressed a switch on the door, and the window lowered. The sight that both mother and daughter saw before them made them gasp in shock.

Some distance away from the limo was a dog, barking rabidly and snapping its jaws full of teeth, was attacking two young boys. One of them had blond hair and appeared to be the older of the two; the younger boy had black hair and was unconscious. Blood was pouring from the younger's right leg with holes visible on the limb, likely to be bite marks. The dog had gotten to them moments prior.

Weiss was astonished to see such an event. It had a sublime element to it; she never seen a struggle between a vicious animal and two boys, but she was horrified by the bloody battle for survival, between child and beast. Why this dog was after these boys she wasn't sure, but Weiss felt certain that the two were at their end. However, she could see a look of determination on the conscious older boy, with his eyes focused but angry and his teeth grinding against each other.

Then, she saw something inexplicable. Some kind of blue aura was emanating from the boy, as he seemed to calm down in front of the rabid dog. Suddenly, another figure appeared, seeming to be emerge from the boy's own body and aura. It split into two shapes slowly taking form, floating over him. The dog took notice of this emergence as well. It was as if they came at the beckoning of the boy, Weiss thought. What they were exactly, however, she wasn't sure yet.

They soon took a more definable appearance and Weiss was surprised by what she saw. Floating above the boy were helicopters. They had smooth surfaces with not much threat displayed in their looks, almost as if they were toys. However, the design of these machines was something even she recognized, seeing them in movie or a book. Long tails, narrow cockpits, and weapons under the short wings; they were akin to attack helicopters.

" **Bad Company**!" the boy suddenly called out. As if in response, the helicopters were preparing to fire. Shooting with impressive speed, they fired a hail of bullets at the dog. Each one hit its mark but didn't do much damage, only nicking the skin and drawing blood. Although, the action did manage to severely bother the animal as so many bullets struck it. Then, the helicopters a fired a missile each. Two projectiles left a trail of light smoke as they sped towards their target.

The first missile hit, blowing off a good chunk of meat from the side of its face. Before it could even react to the pain from the wound and the blood gushing from it, the second missile struck the dog's brow. More flesh was blown off, just above its right eye and blood-stained bone was showing. Now, it felt the striking pain of its wounds. With two bleeding holes in its face, the dog shrieked in distress, terrified by an enemy it apparently underestimated. The dog ran off in fear; the boy watched it go, sighed in relief, and the two helicopters disappeared.

Weiss was flabbergasted. Two helicopters just magically appeared out of nowhere and drove away the dog with considerable firepower, regardless of their toy-like appearance. It was impossible! Surely there was something else at work, creating this bizarre illusion she saw.

She couldn't ponder the impossibility further, when she saw the older boy reach for something in his pocket and pulled out a chewed piece of meat, possibly jerky. This may have been the cause for their trouble: the two were hungry and found it, which was originally claimed by the dog. They must have plucked it when it wasn't looking but it still caught them in the act, bit the younger boy and chased them down here, until the older boy called out those strange helicopters.

"Here Okuyasu… eat this…" the boy was trying to show the food to the younger one, apparently named Okuyasu. He didn't answer, and it apparently seemed to irritate the older one.

"Dammit, wake up and eat!" he shouted at his unconscious peer. "You need it more, you idiot!" Despite being loud and angry, it did nothing to wake him up. The older child grunted in displeasure.

Weiss was very young, so she wasn't sure how to comprehend the thoughts and emotions going through this boy's head. She was still focused on those helicopters she saw, even while watching this tragic display. However, someone else empathized with this scene.

"Dear God…" said Mrs. Schnee. Weiss turned to see her mother. The elegant woman had her hand covering her mouth, tears threatening to burst from her eyes.

"Mother…?" Weiss asked in concern. She wasn't sure why her own mother was going to cry at this scary scene. Mrs. Schnee looked at her daughter when addressed. Taking a moment, she used her hand to wipe her eyes, and gained a determined expression.

The driver wasn't focused on the situation. When he saw the light finally turn green, he pressed the accelerator to get moving. The two Schnees felt the limousine start moving again.

"Driver! Keep the car still!" Mrs. Schnee commanded. Though surprised, the driver complied and hastily hit the brakes, giving the car a jolt. The older boy must have heard the car brake, who was startled and looking in their direction. He didn't see them there the whole time.

Mrs. Schnee got up, standing as much as she could in the cramped space and stepped over Weiss, reaching for the door. "Weiss, stay in the car," she ordered her daughter.

"Mother?" Weiss asked, unsure of what her mother was doing. Mrs. Schnee looked at Weiss for a moment to say something else.

"And prepare for some company," she informed, shocking Weiss.

"What?!" she exclaimed, now getting a good idea of what her mother was planning.

Mrs. Schnee turned her gaze forward, opened door, and stepped out. She walked over to where the boys were, sitting on the street in the rain. She walked speedily over to them, but the older boy was defensive once she got over.

Weiss left the car door open, as she saw her mother approach the two boys. She saw the older one take a defensive stance. She wasn't sure, but she might have seen the boy's aura appear again like licks of flame.

"Come with me, young man," Mrs. Schnee requested of the boy. He didn't budge.

She tried to take a step closer but once she did, the boy's aura came back. She witnessed the events with the helicopters transpire, but she was surprised he called up his abilities against her, another human being. Weiss saw the boy's aura flare up again, fearing for her mother's safety. However, Mrs. Schnee knew that the younger boy's condition was more important than what little trust the older boy had for a stranger.

"If you want him to live, come with us," she told him, and his expression perked with realization at that. "Please," she begged.

The boy stared at her for a moment, his aura still active. But he turned to look at the younger, knowing he needed medical attention. Left with no choice, the older boy calmed down and his aura died out. He gave Mrs. Schnee a look with some reluctance, but she returned that look with an expression of reassurance, silently telling him that she wanted to help, and everything would be alright.

Mrs. Schnee helped the older boy carry the younger one into the car. Weiss was surprised that her mother actually got those two soaked boys into their pristine transport. Mrs. Schnee made sure that both of them were comfortable in their seats, and had them buckled in

"Driver, take us to the nearest hospital immediately," she announced.

"Yes ma'am," responded the driver and sped off quickly, regardless of whether the traffic light kept green or not.

As they drove, Weiss looked over to the older boy and his unconscious peer. She was concerned with whether having those two strange boys, one unconscious and wounded, inside the family's limousine was acceptable. As she kept staring though, the older boy eventually noticed and looked in her direction. Weiss gulped and immediately looked away, not wanting to be caught. The boy said nothing and went back to looking forward. After that brief exchange, the drive to the hospital was a quiet and solemn one.

* * *

Mrs. Schnee wasn't sure if they made it to the hospital in time, but they got there all the same. She was uncertain if that dog was rabid and the bite was infected, or if the boy was losing too much blood from his damaged limb. She entered the building, with the unconscious child in her arms, with the older boy and Weiss following close behind. The nurse was able to get a handle of the situation, placing the child on a medical bed and transported down the halls.

Her fears for the boy's life were squelched, to her relief, when the doctor told her that the child was going to be fine. The older boy seemed relieved to hear the news as well. Weiss also expressed some gratitude, as she was afraid she was going to see someone die tonight. Mrs. Schnee assured her that she wasn't going to experience a fright like that.

The three of them entered the room he was in. His leg was wrapped in a cast, and an IV tube attached to his left arm, sustaining him for his lost blood. The doctor explained everything to her and what should be done afterward and left them to the boy. Mrs. Schnee looked directly to the older boy.

"He's been given vaccination and his leg's been sown and patched," she told him confidently. "He'll be fine."

The child didn't say anything, his expression not changing much. Without a response from him, Mrs. Schnee continued speaking.

"Could you tell me you and your brother's names?" she asked him. The boy took a moment before he answered.

"… Keicho Nijimura. He's Okuyasu," he said.

"Keicho…" Mrs. Schnee repeated. "Come with me so that we can talk to the doctors, okay?" Though she knew them by name now, she didn't have a clue what to do with them. She hoped that speaking with the doctors and hearing him open up would help the situation.

"… Fine," Keicho complied, though with some hesitance from him. Relieved at his cooperation, Mrs. Schnee then turned to her daughter.

"Weiss, you're going to stay with Okuyasu, okay?" She asked of her. Weiss looked bemused by her request.

"B-But, I'd rather come with you!" she complained.

"I don't want to leave Okuyasu alone right now," Mrs. Schnee reasoned. "Besides, if he wakes up, you could try to talk to him."

"Mother, I don't want to be alone with him," Weiss refuted. "He looks off-putting to me… no offence."

Keicho looked at her neutrally, seemingly taking no offence at her remarks toward his brother. "I don't blame you. He isn't smart at all."

Mrs. Schnee sighed at her predicament. If she really was going to receive some resistance tonight, she should've expected from her daughter. Weiss may have been spoiled with her upbringing, but her mother knew how to make her daughter cooperate. Mrs. Schnee looked at her daughter firmly in the eyes.

"Stay with him. That's an order, Weiss," she stated. Weiss felt a slight chill up her spine, as she remembered not to cross her mother. Though father would likely yell loudly at her for any misdeed, Weiss knew that his reprimands could not equal her mother's fury.

"… Yes, Mother," Weiss finally complied. Mrs. Schnee nodded, and thanked her daughter for understanding.

Weiss' mother left the room with Keicho Nijimura in tow. Letting out a 'humph', she moved to a seat next to the hospital bed and sat down. She looked at the unconscious boy, Okuyasu if she heard correctly, and thought sourly of him. It was nice to know that he was alive, but that should have been the end of it. Once they were been settled, she and her mother should have left them to their business. They may have been children like her, but they seemed to handle themselves fine, if fighting off that dog meant anything. But she had to be kind to them, and it baffled Weiss why her mother would be this way towards strangers.

The moments that passed felt like a lifetime to Weiss, making her want to go home that much more. Spending time with the unconscious child filled her with boredom, so much that the only thing that she thought would be exciting now would be sleep. Her eyes felt heavy and tired, so she let sleep take a hold of her. But it was only for a short period of time, when she heard grumbling beside her. Her eyes fluttered open, as she looked over to her right.

The boy, Okuyasu, was waking up to Weiss' surprise. He slowly sat up on the bed, showing some signs of pain from his injuries. Once he managed to sit up properly he looked around to see his surroundings, which he was unfamiliar with.

"… Huh?" was all he said to express his surprise.

"Oh… you're awake?" said Weiss. Okuyasu looked to his left, surprised by the sight of a little girl sitting close to him.

"W-Where am I?" he managed to say to her.

"You're at a hospital… duh," answered Weiss. She wasn't sure how couldn't tell where he was, seeing how a catheter was in his arm and his leg in a cast.

"W-Wait a sec… where's my Big Bro?" he asked, concern showing on his face.

"Your brother? He's speaking with my mother," Weiss answered. He looked at her confused

"Why?" he asked.

"To talk with the doctors and discuss this situation," Weiss replied. She wasn't sure if she could take any more frequent questions.

"Oh…" he uttered, seemingly accepting the answer without suspicion. Weiss was a little surprised that he wasn't concerned about his brother anymore. If her older sister was somewhere she didn't know, she would be worried sick. Okuyasu looked at her directly and asked her something else.

"Are you, like, my nurse or something?" he enquired without much thought. Weiss blushed a deep red of confusion and embarrassment.

"W-What?! No!" she exclaimed. "I'm not old enough to be a nurse! What makes you think I am one?!" Okuyasu was surprised by the tone she took with him, implying that he did something wrong.

"S-Sorry! I just haven't been to a hospital in a while!" he said in his defense.

Weiss raised her brow in confusion. How could he have not been in a hospital for enough time to not recognize what nurses looked like? "For how long?" she asked.

Okuyasu looked away in bashfulness. "Uh… I don't know," was all he could answer.

 _"He's so stupid!"_ she immediately thought of him. Now she wanted to be in the same room with him even less than before. "Whatever," she stated dismissively.

"Why am I here, anyway?" Okuyasu asked. She didn't want to continue talking to him, but she felt it was rude to not answer a question.

"You and your brother were attacked by a dog," Weiss informed him, to which the boy blinked in response.

"Oh… so that's why my leg feels bad," he observed.

"Yes, your brother saved you by hurting it and it ran away," she continued.

"He did? Heh, that's my bro for ya," he stated with a hint of pride, which Weiss picked up on.

"You're fine with him harming others?" she asked, believing the boy had no empathy for anyone other than himself and his brother.

"Only when they try to kill ya first," he retorted, as if he knew what he was talking about.

"… Well, what's weird about it was how he did it," she claimed, getting Okuyasu's attention. "He summoned something that looked like helicopters, and I don't know how they even–!"

"Helicopters?" Okuyasu repeated. At that, his expression brightened up. "Hey, I know what you're talking about!"

"Huh?" uttered Weiss in curiosity.

"Yeah, that was his… uh… what's it called again…?" he tried to define but didn't seem to have the right words.

"You mean it's a semblance?" she assumed. She was educated in the people of Remnant's abilities of aura and semblances. Her parents hoped that she would inherit the Schnee family's semblance, passed down from generation to generation, so she studied the subject to understand and use it to its full capabilities in the future.

"No, not that…" he claimed. Suddenly, his eyes widened as remembered the exact term. "Oh right! It was his stand!"

…

"… A 'stand?'" Weiss asked, not understanding him at all.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed.

"… I'm sorry, but how is such an ability like that named after standing?" she inquired of him.

"No, it's not like that!" he said. "It's like… well…"

"Like what? Tell me, if you know more about this," she demanded of him.

"Well… I'm not good at telling, so let me just show it."

"Huh?" Weiss wasn't sure how he would show a 'stand', of which she wasn't convinced that it had no relation to standing in any way.

"… **The Hand!** " Okuyasu exclaimed.

Suddenly, his body was surrounded in a vibrant blue aura. To Weiss' surprise, it was a similar blue to the aura his brother had, as she saw from the dog attack. Again, like his brother, a form began to emerge from Okuyasu's aura and take shape. It wasn't two small shapes, and it seemed to be much larger than those helicopters. Once it was done forming and its visage was more definable, Weiss found herself looking at something human… yet inhuman.

It was a humanoid and childlike figure, with a body colored bright white and wearing deep blue armor. Yellow spikes sprouted from its shoulder pads, something akin to a towel was draped over its shoulders, and its right hand had some sort of pattern engraved on the inside of it. It was about the same size of Okuyasu, if not slightly larger. Its most defining features were its head and face, with blinders on each side. Its eyes weren't really 'eyes,' but more like round headlights that were a glowing yellow, and its mouth was an open triangular shape.

As it came into existence, a sort of semi-sentience seemed to activate within the being. It looked directly at Weiss, observing her, and she was terrified by it.

"W-WHAT IS THAT?!" she shouted.

"It's my stand," said Okuyasu proudly, oblivious to how she thought of it. "I called it **the Hand** , 'cus it has this weird pattern on its right hand–!"

"I-It's inhuman!" declared Weiss, confusing Okuyasu.

"Wha? No it ain't!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, really? Just look at it!" she said. "Nothing has yellow headlights for eyes!"

The boy and the 'stand' looked at her, then at each other. Both had a look of realization (seemingly, in the stand's case) after hearing her words.

"Well, stands don't always look like people," defended Okuyasu. At that, his stand had deformed and dissipated. The experience was very shocking to Weiss, to see it arise and to see it disappear. However, she realized that his 'stand' was an entirely different entity than what his brother had summoned.

"Wait… how is your brother's helicopters a 'stand?'" Weiss asked of him.

"Big Bro said all stands are different," he explained. "His stand's called **Bad Company** , and it's not just a bunch of helicopters."

Weiss vaguely remembered that Okuyasu's brother called those words out when he fought the canine. However, she was astounded to hear from the younger boy that it wasn't just a pair of helicopters.

"It isn't?" She asked for clarification.

"Nah, it's like… a whole group of little guys, tanks, and helicopters," he stated, at which Weiss was flabbergasted.

"A-Are you serious?" she queried, finding it hard to believe.

"Yeah! It's like Big Bro has a whole mini army for himself!" he exclaimed happily.

"… Incredible," Weiss managed to say. She was starting to find these stands to be extraordinary by the second. It was a whole new world with several possibilities and varieties, and she found herself wanting to know more.

"Yup. My Big Bro's the best! And the strongest!" Okuyasu claimed.

At that, Weiss finally noticed that Okuyasu had great admiration for his brother. How he thought highly of him as the most powerful person they knew, it was similar to how Weiss thought of her older sister Winter. It also invoked some of her own pride; Weiss thought, or knew, that her sister was the strongest and couldn't be defeated. Even if these stands seemed incredible to her, she believed that Winter wouldn't be ousted by such things.

"… Hmph. I wouldn't say so," voiced Weiss.

"Huh?" said Okuyasu, unsure of what she was getting at.

"You and your brother may have these stands, but my family have semblances," she stated, "and my older sister is very strong with her semblance!"

"What?! No way!" exclaimed Okuyasu. Keicho couldn't be beaten in anyway, so how dare she say otherwise? "My Big Bro could kick your sis's butt!"

Weiss scoffed at the idea. "Impossible! My sister can't be bested by anyone! I doubt your brother could do any better!"

"I bet he can!" claimed Okuyasu.

"Cannot!"

"Can!"

Both glared at each other, standing headstrong by their words. Soon however, though they were still children, they realized that they didn't actually know who was stronger. They were just being defensive of their older siblings, their very own idols who've lived with them for most of their lives. Seeing their common trait, both soon laughed off their silly argument together. The air around them became much friendlier.

"Hey, uh… I don't know your name," said Okuyasu, and Weiss blinked in surprise.

"Oh! My apologies… my name is Weiss Schnee. You're Okuyasu, right?" she asked while reaching her hand out to him.

"Y-Yeah! Okuyasu Nijimura, nice to meet ya!" he confirmed his name to her and reached with his good hand to shake hers.

What was thought to be a meaningless interaction turned out to be the foundation of a new friendship. As they shook hands, each had a thought run through their minds.

 _"He's better to be around than I thought…"_ thought Weiss.

 _"Gosh, she's really cute…"_ thought Okuyasu.

* * *

As Mrs. Schnee had suspected, the two boys had no family to go to. Keicho explained that he and his brother have lived on the streets of Atlas for at least a couple months. To be poor and homeless in the center of Atlas would be suicidal, she couldn't fathom how the two had survived for so long at their age. She supposed they thrived with the help of the "stand" Keicho could summon. How he developed such a power, or even how he and his brother ended up on the streets, the boy wouldn't say and didn't want to touch the subject again. The doctors told her that she could have the authorities relocate them to an orphanage or, if she was willing to, which they thought wasn't likely, let them live with her. To their surprise, she chose the latter.

Mrs. Schnee wouldn't trust the support of strangers and thought herself the only one who could help them. She brought Keicho to her family's estate, and soon moved Okuyasu there once he could leave the hospital. Though her two other children, the oldest Winter and youngest Whitley, were unsure of the stand-wielding brothers at first, Weiss was more welcoming to them from their previous interactions. However, the most disapproving of the two boys was the patriarch of the Schnee family. Jacques Schnee wouldn't have "urchins" as he called them live in his home, but his wife fought fervently for their right to stay.

Jacques only allowed them in when he couldn't bare Mrs. Schnee's arguments any longer, and the two boys had already eaten much of their food while living there. Jacques was finally willing to let them in, but he thought up a condition. He found their manners reprehensible, so if these low-class boys would live with his children, then they would learn to serve them. Mrs. Schnee disliked the idea of making them their slaves, but soon found herself unable to change Jacques' mind. She relented, and he had them trained as servants.

Another catch was that the two boys would be assigned to his daughters as their own personal servants. The oldest Nijimura son was given to the Schnees' eldest daughter, Winter. As for his little brother… he would belong to Weiss.

* * *

 _Present time, few weeks ago._

* * *

"Okuyasu! Set the dishes!"

"Rrk!"

"Place the silverware!"

"Ungh!"

"No, no, no! The forks go on the _left_ side of the plate!"

"Crap!"

"Good Lord, have you even folded the napkins?!"

"SHIT!"

It took forty-five minutes to have the table completely set and organized. For Weiss Schnee she deemed the process had taken too long to finish but, for Okuyasu Nijimura, it was his new best personal record.

Okuyasu had been serving Weiss for the past twelve years. He had been trained by the family's head butler and instructed by his master herself. However, he had only improved very little, even in comparison to his first six years in service. It was a combination of incompetence, impulsiveness, and idiocy that made him a lousy servant. What kept him in service though, was his determination to work diligently, his potential to be fully competent, and Weiss' stubbornness in regard to keeping him in the Schnee household.

Weiss was a year older than Okuyasu, but he was quite a few inches taller than her, if not a whole foot. Weiss was in her usual attire, a bolero jacket over a strapless dress and boots with wedged heels, all in white with a pale blue gradation. Her snowy white hair was now much longer, tied into a side ponytail. Okuyasu was wearing his servant attire, a black vest over a white shirt, black pants and shoes, and a blue bowtie. His hair was divided in two parts, the top colored black and styled into a short pompadour, and the back and sides dyed a dark silver with two thin rat tails in the back, sticking up and angled. His face was rather intimidating, with two scar lines crossing his face like semi-circles, and his eyes were like dots, the pupil and iris nearly indistinguishable.

If one looked very closely, they'd see that they were light purple.

Just after finishing the table, Okuyasu breathed in and out exhaustedly, having hurried himself to correct his mistakes as Weiss pointed them out. He was relieved to finish it already, as the work day was barely close to ending. On the other hand, his mistress stared intensely at his handiwork with dissatisfaction in her expression, which he didn't notice. After a quiet exhale of breath, she spoke her thoughts out loud.

"… B minus," Weiss declared, giving a verbal grading of Okuyasu's setting of the table. At that, he gawked at her with wide eyes.

"What?! W-why the minus?!" he spouted. Weiss looked at him sternly.

"You keep making mistakes with the easiest tasks," she explained, "when you should ace them on the spot. It's all about memorizing, Okuyasu!"

"But… I'm not smart enough to remember this stuff," he stated, scratching the back of his head with his hand. Weiss sighed in frustration.

"You're supposed to, this is your job after all," she told him. "That will be enough, we'll pick this up first thing tomorrow." As she said this, she attempted to make her leave.

"Okay, Weiss," said Okuyasu. She stopped when she heard him say her name so casually, and again sighed.

"… And that's another thing," she turned to look at him directly. "You shouldn't call me that."

"But that's your name, right?" reasoned Okuyasu.

"Yes but addressing me by my first name is not formal," she explained, then she rose the volume of her voice while speaking to him. "You're too casual! You're supposed to call me Ms. Schnee!"

"But why can't I call you by your first name? Hell, why do I have to do this table stuff anyway?!"

Okuyasu was getting all the more irritated with the lifestyle given to him. It went against his nature, Weiss knew that already. But she knew it was the only life he could afford, so she made her move to remind him of that.

"Because it's necessary," she stated, walking closer to him. "You're supposed to be a personal help to me, the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. If you're not taken seriously, make a single mistake, or even offend someone by a hair, my father would have you thrown out on the streets."

Okuyasu gulped when she said all of this to him, a drop of nervous sweat running down his brow. She was right. He had nowhere else to go, and he knew nothing else than servitude to the Schnees, even if he wasn't good at it. But what made him really fear Weiss' words was the mention of her father. Everyone knew that he was the least fond of the Nijimura brothers, especially Okuyasu. Whenever he would find an opportunity to be rid of Okuyasu, he would surely make use of it.

"You don't want that at all, right?" Weiss asked of him. It didn't seem like he needed to verbally answer, but it would be reassurance to hear him speak. Okuyasu, with no way to retort, responded to her.

"… No," he said.

"Good," said Weiss. "Now get as much rest as you can, I'm going to make sure you get up as early as possible for this."

Now she truly left, opening the door and closing it behind her, leaving Okuyasu with the table he worked hard on.

"… God, she's so brutal," he declared to no one in particular.

* * *

It was night time, the shattered moon of Remnant high in the starry sky. Its moonlight shined through the windows of the Schnee family mansion. Okuyasu was walking down one of its many grand halls, searching for his room so he could sleep. He was not wearing much other than a sleeveless shirt and baggy pants. As he wandered, he thought of how life as Weiss' personal aide was strenuous.

 _"Why the hell does she have to work me out like that, huh?!"_ he thought to himself. _"It's everyday she stretches me like some stupid stretchy toy!"_

Though he had such sour thoughts, he quickly pushed them away. He knew Weiss was being tough on him for all of the good and necessary reasons there were. She'd never extort him to the point of rendering him weak and useless, but it still felt that way. Instead, he thought of how he really felt about her.

 _"I just wish she'd treat me more like a person,"_ he pondered. _"I at least try to… and more than that."_

Okuyasu had been in love with her, almost since he first met her. It had begun with a simple thought of how pretty she was and budded into deeper feelings. He'd always think that a girl was pretty whenever he saw one, and he still thought many women were gorgeous when he saw them (or most of them at least). Weiss, however, was different. She was someone he was familiar with, someone he spent with a majority of his lifetime. While for strangers he only had a single thought about them and no more than that, Weiss' beauty was constantly on his mind and he would be instantly reminded of it whenever he saw her.

Granted, there were some things that were faults in her image. For instance, she was a spoiled girl with a snarky personality and would think rather highly of herself. Whenever she had her concerts and several people would complement her afterwards, saying she had a wonderful voice, she would always remark they should cease from stating the obvious. Of course, there was also the tough treatment she gave him in regard to be her servant.

But how else was he supposed to feel? This woman fought for him in a household whose lord did not accept him. She may have been irritated by his lack of intelligence, but she didn't think of him as a lesser being for it and she would treat him fairly most times (outside of acting like her servant). She'd even ask for his opinion occasionally for some things, even if his bluntness would anger her. Okuyasu was one of the closest people to her, one of the few she truly opened up to. He was her best friend… and the reason he hasn't confessed to her is because he fears that's all she thought of him, not sharing the same affection that he had for her.

Although, every time he would think of her so much, one thing always prevented him from going too deep into thought that he would have rather dark, shadier thoughts of her. It was his headaches.

 _"God dammit, thinking about her like that makes my head hurt!"_ Because of his slow mentality, thinking too hard would be quite stressful on his psyche.

With all thought pushed aside, Okuyasu aimed to do nothing else but plop on his bed and sleep until whenever he wanted. That is, he would, if Weiss won't wake him up. It was very likely that she would. As Okuyasu walked passed an open door, he heard someone speak.

"What did you say just now?" it was Weiss. Hearing her surprised him, as he expected her to be asleep at this point.

He looked to the open door and saw her standing there, her left side facing him. Her hair was down, and she was in her nightgown. She didn't notice him at all, and Okuyasu didn't see who she was speaking to from his view.

"I'm not repeating myself, Weiss." At that, Okuyasu froze for a moment. He knew that voice all too well. It was the voice of the man who ruled over this house and its occupants. The very same Jacques Schnee who severely disliked Okuyasu.

"But you said that I was permitted to go!" exclaimed Weiss. Okuyasu hid to the side of the doorway, listening into their conversation.

"I am aware of what I said beforehand but, lately, I feel that you haven't done much to earn this," said Jacques. Weiss uttered a noise of confused surprise at this.

"W-What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss asked for clarification.

"You haven't really been training for your first day, have you?" deduced Jacques.

Weiss said nothing to that, and Okuyasu could only assume that she stared at her father with widening eyes. With no response from her, Jacques continued.

"Your test is tomorrow," he informed her. "If you can't prove that you deserve this, then you are staying here. That is final."

There was a moment of silence, with no more words coming from either party. Okuyasu kept his position waiting, until Weiss had the last word.

"… I will attend Beacon. No matter what." Okuyasu was stunned to hear her say that.

 _"She's… going to Beacon?"_ He thought. If she was going to Beacon, all the way in another Kingdom, another continent, then what was going to happen to him?

As he thought that, he heard light footsteps from the room. He saw Weiss walk out of the room with a determined, pouting expression. Thankfully, she didn't him hiding by the side of the entryway. He breathed out in relief, albeit quietly, and he made to leave the area himself.

"You can come out now. I know you're there, Okuyasu."

"Gah!"

Okuyasu was surprised to hear that from Jacques of all people. He got over his surprise and sighed in defeat, his shoulders slumping and expression drooping in guilt from getting caught.

He sullenly walked into the room to see the Schnee patriarch gazing at him, waiting for the buffoon to enter.

"It's rude to eavesdrop, you know," he said.

"I-I'm sorry, Sir," apologized Okuyasu, meekly.

"… How much have you heard?" Jacques asked of him.

"Um… something about a test?" said the young man, doing his best to remember Weiss' words. "And Beacon Academy, I think?"

"Weiss didn't tell you that she's going to Beacon, did she?" Jacques enquired.

"Oh… No. She didn't, Sir," admitted Okuyasu.

"Hmm."

Despite his disapproval of Okuyasu, and everyone in the household's acknowledgement of that fact, Jacques was capable of being respectful towards others. Okuyasu was a little surprised that Jacques wasn't chewing him out now, like he usually would.

Regardless, thoughts of Weiss' desire for Beacon were swimming rapidly through Okuyasu's mind. What would become of him? Would they keep him? It seemed unlikely. Would they throw him out when she was away? That seemed more probable, knowing what Jacques Schnee thought of him.

This bothered him so much that he didn't notice any headaches from thinking too hard. Did Jacques know this was bothering him? Is that why he even bothered to speak to him right now? Even if the man wasn't fond of him, he figured he would at least be honest with him.

"So… what would happen to me?" Okuyasu asked. Jacques looked at him curiously.

"What do you mean?" he questioned. So much for straight answers.

"I mean, I'm her servant, right?" he said. "What am I gonna do?"

"… Would you be willing to serve Whitley while Weiss is gone?" suggested Jacques, at which Okuyasu donned a look of disgust.

"What? Ugh, no way! That brat is–!" Okuyasu stopped himself when he saw the glare Jacques gave him. As respectful as he could be to the delinquent, he wasn't going to allow him to insult his only son.

"I-I mean… no, Sir," Okuyasu corrected himself. Jacques softened his gaze at him.

"I thought not," he admitted. Then, the head of the Schnee family had an idea. "Even if she will be so far from Atlas, perhaps she would still need her favorite server."

At that, Okuyasu's attention perked up. "Huh?"

"Tomorrow morning, Weiss will take a test to prove that she earned the right to leave our kingdom for Beacon," Jacques informed the servant. "If both of you wish for it, you may attend Beacon with her as well."

"Really?!" shouted Okuyasu in surprise and excitement.

"But on one condition: You must not interfere with her testing, no matter what obstacle befalls her," he told Okuyasu, who looked at him with surprise but understanding. "If you do, neither of you will even set foot on Vale this school session. Is that understood?"

"Y-Yes Sir!" said the delinquent, with little to no hesitation. As he thought through, which was not a long process, Okuyasu believed that it would be easy. After all, he would do anything to be with Weiss and away from Jacques.

"Good. You are dismissed, Okuyasu."

"Thank you, Sir! I won't forget this!"

Okuyasu left the room and headed off to his own quarters, with an upbeat mood and a skip in his step. With this happy attitude, it might be a little difficult for him to sleep now, but it didn't matter. He was just happy to experience school with his dearest friend. As for Jacques, he looked out the window, thinking aloud to himself.

"… This may not be how I've pictured it but, I've finally gotten rid of that bumbling fool. Although, only for a while at least," he said with a smile.

* * *

 ***SHUNK***

Weiss ran her sword through the last drone's head, sparks flying as she pulled it out, and it fell to the floor destroyed. She swiped her weapon, hung it on her hip, and breathed out. With her final opponent defeated, she believed that her test was finally done. Weiss had taken the training exam as per her father's request (demand, really), in order to earn his blessings to attend Beacon. She was concerned that he would arrange a more difficult challenge to take up her time, but she was glad it only took so shortly.

She donned her usual white attire, as from yesterday, but this time she had carried her own weapon, a sword called Myrtenaster. A light rapier painted a silver grey, it could leave thin and shallow cuts on opponents, and could pierce certain targets with the applied precision. The hilt was four fin-like prongs, encasing its most prominent feature – a chamber built into the rapier. It was similar to the chamber of a revolver pistol and could hold Dust ammunition for her to use in several versatile ways.

With all of the androids inactive, generously provided by the Atlas military, Weiss believed she could relax and report to her father of her accomplishments. She would finally get ready to pack and leave for Beacon.

"YEAH! GREAT JOB, WEISS!"

Then her nerves made her tense, caught by surprise by her servant's loud praise. She forgotten that Okuyasu was watching her, alongside the test's moderators.

She wasn't expecting in the least bit that her father would allow Okuyasu to go with her to Beacon. Knowing him, she assumed that he would have his own plans for the foolish young man and believed he wouldn't listen to her if she did request for him to come. So she kept quiet on the matter, but Jacques has managed to have silence her assumptions by letting her take him. However, as she was told by Okuyasu, the condition was he couldn't interfere or help her with the training test, which she was perfectly fine with.

Okuyasu was in a different apparel than his usual servant attire. He was dressed in a modified version of an Atlas Academy school uniform that was previously in use, before a change to a different style of clothing. It was a dark blue double-breasted jacket and baggy pants, with white piping on the jacket. The jacket was decorated with golden metal emblems; on his right collar was a 'Y' with two parallel horizontal lines crossing through it. On the left was an 'S' with vertical lines, and a larger version of that symbol on his chest. On the left arm was written "billion" in all capitals. Wrapped around his waist were two green belts, and he wore green shoes.

It had become apparent that Okuyasu had a desire for wealth over the years. Not in a way that he would kill for money of course, but he was certainly opportunistic for it. It was natural for boys his age to want money, but someone like him would invoke a little concern from some people. As Weiss could see him from the moderator's office, standing by the window high up the wall, she was irked by his attire.

 _"Idiot…"_ she thought to herself. Why did he have to wear that ridiculous clothing? As Okuyasu was waving down to her happily, he was stopped by the person in charge of the exam.

"That will be enough cheering, Mr. Nijimura," said the Secretary of the Schnee Dust Company. She was Jacque Schnee's personal aide for the company, effectively second in command. She was a middle-aged woman, wearing a regular suit and tie, glasses, and her hair was tied in a low ponytail.

"Uh… okay," muttered Okuyasu, feeling somewhat uncomfortable at being quieted by the woman.

"As expected, the Heiress possesses much talent," the Secretary said to Weiss over the loudspeaker. "After I had witnessed your first duel, I can earnestly say that you matured and improved in all aspects of your skill, Ms. Schnee."

"You're awfully flattering today, aren't you Madam Secretary?" Weiss observed.

"She is?" questioned Okuyasu. He didn't know the Secretary that well, so he hadn't picked up on her whatever her mannerisms were, unlike Weiss.

"Perhaps… but you are still in need of improvement, and the only place you can achieve such is here, in Atlas," the Secretary replied.

"But… isn't she going to Beacon?" Okuyasu questioned.

"I most certainly am, Okuyasu," responded Weiss, hearing him over the moderator room's loudspeaker. "I've already stated this. Do I have to go to my father to discuss your selfishness with him, Miss Secretary?"

"No. The President has entrusted me with this matter, so you have no need of bothering him," she said. She spoke her next words with a slightly smug expression.

"After all, he couldn't possibly have the time to be bothered with such a trifling matter as this." Weiss said nothing at that, but if anyone was down there beside her, they'd notice she had some traces of a grimace.

"Hey… that's pretty harsh, don't ya think?" Okuyasu mentioned, with irritation lacing his voice. He didn't take kindly to the Secretary's words to his master.

"That doesn't prohibit the truth in my statements," she told him. "She should know when she should confront issues on her own."

"Tch." Okuyasu grunted in displeasure, turning his head away from the Secretary.

"Why do you want to be so far away, Ms. Weiss?" the Secretary inquired of the heiress. "Vale has nothing different from our own Kingdom, and we wouldn't be able to respond quick enough if something happened. You'd be all alone."

"First of all, I prefer the distance between here and Vale," Weiss replied. "Second, I would not be alone at all, with Okuyasu at my beckoning."

"Yeah, I'm going with her! You can't argue that!" Okuyasu declared.

"And lastly, what would you do if I stayed in Atlas, but any actions I make happen to disgrace the family name?" asked Weiss. She sounded to actually mean that, not just using it as an excuse.

"I understand both of your concerns, truly I do. You were born into a family of power, and you were adopted into it," the Secretary said to them, addressing Weiss' and Okuyasu's situations respectively. "The president is concerned with the two of you, that is all."

"He is?" asked Okuyasu.

"Of course," she responded confidently. "He doesn't want some serious disagreement or incident to occur, like with Ms. Winter and Mr. Keicho."

Upon hearing that, Okuyasu gulped. He remembered well the event that caused a rift between Weiss' sister, his brother, and her father. Keicho was Winter's personal server, much like Okuyasu belonged to Weiss. Jacques was actually fonder of Keicho than Okuyasu, as he was smart, diligent, and arguably relentless in his service to the family. However, he followed Winter willingly in her decision to become a part of the military and now both were high ranking soldiers. Jacques was infuriated by their actions of leaving the family.

"Hmph." While Okuyasu was troubled by the Secretary bringing those memories up, Weiss scoffed at her words.

"Trying to undermine their choices? You don't understand anything at all," she said with a smirk. "You don't even realize how much like a puppet you are, with little to no will whatsoever."

The Secretary turned her gaze at Weiss' direction, but no one could see her wide, glaring eyes behind her glasses. Okuyasu made an o-shape with his mouth, the erupted in hearty laughter.

"Hahahah! That's a good one, Weiss!" he called out. Weiss once again heard him over the loudspeaker.

"I know, Okuyasu. And what did I tell you about how you should address me?!" she demanded of him, catching the delinquent by surprise mid-laugh.

"Aghk! … Sorry." He quickly apologized for the mistake.

" _Irritating_ …" spoke the Secretary, angered by the insolent tone the heiress took with her. She turned to one of the test's operators. "Do it."

"A-Are you sure…?" the man looked at her nervously.

"It's fine… just open the gate," she told him. He complied nonetheless.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" asked Okuyasu. Before he knew it, the operator pressed a button on the control panel. Suddenly, the large wall behind Weiss was shifting open, getting her attention. She looked on at what was seemingly an abyss of shadow behind those doors.

"If only the two of you had simply listened from the start…" stated the Secretary.

In a flash, a massive object came hurtling towards her and struck the ground behind her. It created a shock throughout the massive room. Weiss looked to her left and saw that it was a massive sword.

"Eh?" was all she muttered in reaction.

"HOLY SHIT~!" Okuyasu blurted in shock.

Standing before Weiss was a giant being covered head to toe in dark grey armor. It stood at a height twice as tall as her and carried a sword thrice her height. She should have known that her test wasn't over; how foolish it was to think that a mere few droids would be the only thing her father would throw at her. She'd never seen an android of this size before, although she soon realized it wasn't just a droid. On the top of the giant's helmet there sat a small bony face plate, one akin to the mask of a Grimm.

"The armor isn't alive on its own," the Secretary informed. "It is possessed by a Geist, the possession-type Grimm, that we successfully captured. The armor's strength almost surpasses that of the latest model of the Atlas Paladin. As for other details… well, I think they speak for themselves."

"It's so goddamn big…" said Okuyasu in awe. "But, for some reason, I'm getting a strange sense of déjà vu just by lookin' at it."

"I've seen it before as well," agreed Weiss. "It stands in our family's museum, doesn't it?"

"It is not the same armor as the one being exhibited, I assure you," said the Secretary. "It's just the same model… and with three times the strength."

"… I have no chance of winning, do I?" claimed Weiss, with a nervous smile and a drop of sweat running down her cheek.

"It isn't likely, no," announced the Secretary. "Good luck."

"What?!" Okuyasu was beyond outraged to hear this.

Nevertheless, Weiss engaged the armored giant. The two clashed their blades, sparks flying with each clang. She would use her glyphs to enhance her speed and to dodge the swipes of the giant sword, but her massive foe was relentless. She looked for any vulnerable spots for her to strike but couldn't get any opening. She wondered how exactly she'd overcome this obstacle.

Okuyasu, on the other hand, watched with uneasy eyes and gritting teeth. He couldn't believe that this Secretary, that sick woman, would put Weiss up against such monster. He believed in Weiss skill and ability, but he didn't know for the life of him how she'd defeat this giant. He turned to the Secretary with glaring eyes.

"You're gonna let her fight that thing?!" he demanded. "What's her Dad gonna say, huh?!"

"She wants to be a Huntress, so it's her responsibility to suppress the Grimm," she answered, which didn't satisfy the delinquent.

"But–!"

"'If she's being insistent on her selfishness, then I expect her to win.' Those are the President's own words," interrupted the Secretary. He found himself unable to retort, so Okuyasu turned away from her in anger.

 _"Damn bitch… what if Weiss gets hurt?"_ he thought to himself. _"I don't know what I would do if something happens…"_ Okuyasu was afraid that he was going to break his promise to Jacques. He'd do anything to defend her if he got the chance, but he was afraid of her father's wrath.

Perhaps he was overthinking it. Okuyasu wouldn't need to fight for her often because she could defend herself very adequately. He thought that if she will defeat the giant, and everything would be fine. He decided to put his faith in her strength and keep his oath to her father. He believed everything would be fine. Although, he would at least shout to her encouragement in the battle.

"KICK ITS FUCKING ASS, WEISS!" he exclaimed. Hearing his explicit shout, Weiss was more irked than motivated.

 _"Why is he so crude…?"_ she thought sourly to herself. Despite the distraction, she was still able to fend off her opponent.

Weiss was able to get behind the giant as it swung its sword at her. She struck several areas of it, but her Myrtenaster couldn't pierce through its armor. It swung again, and Weiss was able to block it with the hilt of her sword, but the sheer force threw her back. She was on her feet, just in time to see the giant jump towards her, ready to cast its sword down on her. She dodged to the right as the blade struck the ground. The giant swiped up and she dodged again, but it followed with another swing and Weiss was forced to block. This time she skidded on her back but managed to get back on her feet soon.

Okuyasu was nervous at the slip Weiss had there, but his confidence in her was still strong. Now, Weiss employed more of her semblance to the fight. She summoned her glyphs to enhance her speed, becoming a blur the giant and her observers, and she used them to keep herself balanced in the air, as she struck her opponent. She tried attacking its left leg to weaken it, but that didn't seem to affect the unfeeling Grimm. Before it could react to her, she leapt up with a glyph-enhancement, striking it across the chin and unbalancing it.

She spun in the air, swinging her sword with her and slashing the giant twice across the face. Once again, it did little to phase it, making Weiss wonder why nothing was working against it. The Giant once more swung its massive blade towards her. She stood on her glyph midair and jumped over the oncoming weapon. However, she didn't account for the giant's free left hand. It threw its fist at her, smashing into Weiss face before she could even react. Her aura dissipated in a flash of light, just barely protecting her from the blow, and she hit the ground harshly. She slowly got up, pain and dizziness affecting her.

As she got up though, she noticed something drop to the ground. It was a dark red liquid – blood. Her own blood. The skin around her right eye was split open, fresh blood pouring down the side of her face. With the pain in her head and on her eye, Weiss felt she was up against an unstoppable force. Her expression was wrought with distress, and thoughts of doubt in herself was clouding her judgement.

Okuyasu was stunned and silent. He could see Weiss' cut from another camera view in the moderator room. He couldn't believe what he saw for a second but the more he looked at the screen, the more he couldn't deny it. Sweat was accumulating on his face, and a great conflict arose within himself. The Secretary notices he was visibly disturbed by the scene.

"Do you see now?" she addressed to him. "She can't move forward on her own, without Atlas or her father. How could you possibly be more than enough for her?"

Okuyasu looked at her, grunting in displeasure but his expression still nervous. He turned away from her, with his back to the window view. Feeling that she was closer to convincing their minds, she spoke to Weiss through the loudspeaker once more.

"Your aura is starting to fail you, Ms. Schnee," she announced to the heiress. "You must see the folly of your dreams. Your servant is even starting to think so."

"What?" Weiss uttered with shock. She turned to look up at the window to the moderators' room, high up on the wall. She could faintly see Okuyasu's back turned to her.

She didn't understand this at all. If her father didn't have faith in her, that would be one thing she wasn't concerned with. If her sister was ever disappointed in her, she would take it into account and improve herself. But for Okuyasu, one of the closest people to her, one of her most fervent supporters to not believe in her, made her all the more confused. What was she supposed to make of this? As she was emotionally compromised by her servant's silence, she didn't notice the Giant slowly stepping towards her.

"Are you not, Mr. Nijimura?" the Secretary asked him. Okuyasu said nothing, worrying Weiss as to why he was silent. However, his silence was brief, as he did say something to the Secretary.

"… Lady, I only have two words to say."

"Yes?" she was curious to know.

Suddenly, a glowing blue aura surround him, illuminating the room in colored light. It was not the average aura one would normally see. His aura was shifting away from him, transforming into something else. Something that was large and humanoid.

" **The Hand!** " shouted, summoning his stand into existence.

The Hand was very much similar in appearance as to when Weiss first saw it, except now it was the size of a full-grown adult if not larger. The same white body and blue armor, the spiderweb pattern on its right hand, and the strange head with blinders and headlights for eyes. The only real difference it had was the same 'Y' and 'S' symbols Okuyasu wore, one of each on the ends of the towel around its neck, one on the back of each hand.

Okuyasu marched forward to the glass with his stand, as the Secretary and moderators gawked at him in awe. As he moved towards it, a sort of energy radiated from the Hand's right hand. As he and Weiss had discovered, the pattern on its hand had more significance then they realized. Each stand had their own ability like any semblance, and the Hand's power came from its namesake. It reached out with its right hand towards the window and began to _erase_ the glass, a low booming sound echoing from the action.

The Hand could erase anything from existence, be it living or inanimate. Wherever the erased target went, even Okuyasu didn't know. This power was incredibly terrifying, as it was potentially the most destructive ability, so Weiss made him be extremely careful with his ability. She told him to only use it when he thought it was necessary, but he deemed that he should use it now. That bastard set of armor scarred his master, and he was going to make it pay for that no matter the cost.

His stand wiped away the glass with its hand in circular motions, until a large hole for him to fit through was made. He jumped out, going straight for the arena where Weiss and the giant stood. Weiss stared in shock, seeing him come flying towards her.

"WHAT?!" shouted the Secretary.

"OKUYASU?!" questioned Weiss.

"…?" even the Grimm controlling the armor uttered a noise of confusion, seeing a new target coming towards it seemingly out of the wall.

Okuyasu used the Hand to erase the very space before him, bringing him closer to the giant. He landed safely between it and Weiss, giving his full attention and fury towards the former.

"I'm gonna erase you from existence, ya piece of SHIT!" he declared.

Of course, the giant didn't take kindly to that, and prepared to swing its sword at him now. Okuyasu seemed to be prepared for it, while Weiss looked worried beyond belief.

"Okuyasu, DON'T!" she shouted at him.

" **The Hand**!" Okuyasu commanded his stand to fight, as the Grimm prepared to attack.

Its sword came at him, swung with an impressive speed on the giant's part. The Hand winded its right arm back, waiting for the right moment to counter. Just then, with the sword just a few feet away from them, Okuyasu's stand through its hand towards it, making contact.

Its ability was activated, and it quickly made its way through blade. With no way to stop it, the giant looked in shock as the Hand erased part of the sword. It was like something sharp, as if it was another blade, had cleanly cut through its own weapon. The piece of the sword that wasn't erased flew off in another direction, crashing into the ground. The Grimm raised its sword towards itself to inspect the damage. Though a good portion of it was taken off, it noticed that slight more than half of it was left, making it still usable.

"… I actually did that…" Okuyasu didn't notice what the giant was doing, as he was preoccupied with what he just done. Okuyasu has been training to fight, as any stand user should, but he hasn't gone up against a serious foe like this giant. With what he just accomplished, all while defending Weiss no less, a big toothy smile spread across his face.

"I DID THAT!" he exclaimed victoriously and turned to his master. "Weiss, did you see that?! I got a hit on it!"

"Okuyasu…" Weiss couldn't believe what happened before her, almost not trusting her eyes for a second. She saw him do it, so there was no way to deny it. As impressive as it was, what she couldn't understand at all…

Was how he was still acting like an idiot, even in this situation.

"YOU DUNCE!" Okuyasu was taken aback by her sudden scolding. Even his stand had donned an expression of surprise, or as much as it could with the limitations of its semi-human face.

"W-Wha–?!"

"IT CAN STILL USE THE SWORD!" she exclaimed, which surprised Okuyasu as much as he started to realize it. "KEEP YOUR FOCUS ON IT–!"

Okuyasu tried to look behind him but was too late to notice the giant winding the sword back. It swung at him with great force, hitting him square in the back with the flat of the halved blade. He was sent flying high above over Weiss, who was shocked to see it happen so quickly.

Okuyasu coughed up blood as he flew through the air. His stand, which has now dissipated without him focusing on it, was active when he was hit, meaning he had little to no aura covering him. He flew straight into the wall, hitting it with a sickening thud, and those in the moderator room felt a shock from the impact. He fell to the floor, unconscious.

"No…" Weiss muttered in fear, seeing her servant… her friend, lying on the floor with no movement. Suddenly the floor shook as the giant stepped away from her, towards him. Its attention was not focused on Okuyasu, planning to finish him off. She realized the reality of the situation and would not have it.

As it came to stand over Okuyasu's body, the armored giant raised its sword over its head. Though cut in half, the sword retained its sharp edges that could cut through enemies. It was about to bring it down onto the Schnee's servant, until it suddenly saw the Schnee herself in front of it, standing on a glyph in the air.

She leapt forward and slashed it across the face, just inches away from the Geist's mask. Though certainly angered by what the giant had done, Weiss had realized what its weakness was: the Grimm itself. If she destroyed the head, killing the Grimm in the process, it would leave the armor inactive, and she would be victorious. Realizing its vulnerability was exposed, it felt a pang of fear. The Giant quickly charged at Weiss.

As it did, the chamber in her Myrtenaster shifted, the blade suddenly glowing red. Their weapons clashed, but a burst of power from Weiss' sword pushed back the Grimm. Her rapier then glowed blue, and she struck the ground, creating a thick trail of ice that froze the giant in place. She charged it, the giant again swung its sword at her. When she dodged, she landed on the edge of the halved blade, her own sword now glowing green. She jumped from it and struck its hand, the force of the attack knocking the sword out of its grip destroying the ice surrounding it. She landed on the ground, the giant's weapon crashing behind her.

Left with its fists now, it rushed towards Weiss, where she was charging another glyph. It slammed down on where she stood, though she already dodged. Weiss then activated this glyph and it released a large force of energy, throwing the entire giant up into the air. Next, she launched a series of glyphs that locked the giant in place midair, with no chance to move whatsoever. Weiss jumped up and charged her sword, now glowing with white runes. She launched herself forward, coming straight for the helmet, where the Geist resided.

She struck with great that not only was the Grimm's mask shattered, but the whole helm was cracked in half. Weiss staunched her landing with her glyphs, touching down on the floor safely. The armor fell harshly to the ground, the slain Grimm's essence dissipating from the head. It was defeated, and Weiss sighed in relief.

"Incredible…!" muttered the Secretary. Despite all the madness, she earnestly hadn't expected Weiss to defeat this enemy. She believed that she couldn't go out in the world away from home if she'd lose here, and she sorely underestimated the heiress.

With everything done and finished, Weiss could focus on a very important matter: Okuyasu. She tried to run to him, but she was sore all over, and she felt some blood may have gotten in her eye. She walked at best, grunting in pain whenever she couldn't help it. She got to him eventually, as the Secretary watched her go to her friend.

 _"He broke his promise to the President…"_ she thought to herself. _"Heh, he really is a fool."_

It may have seemed that he didn't care about that when he saw her injured, no matter how relatively minor that cut was. Nevertheless, she was pleased by the outcome. Weiss may be going to Beacon, but now she would be going alone, and if she couldn't survive with her servant then maybe she'd prefer to stay home after all.

Weiss kneeled down next to Okuyasu and moved him, so he'd be sitting up against the wall. He was still unconscious, with some blood trickling down the corner of his mouth.

"Okuyasu, wake up," she told him calmly, though it sounded like a command.

He didn't stir in response, which irritated her.

"Dammit, I said wake up!" she shouted. This time, his eyes started to flutter open.

"… H-Huh?" he said weakly. Weiss looked relieved to see him alive. Okuyasu looked up to Weiss kneeling next to him. "D-Did we… beat it?" he asked her.

"No, _I_ defeated it," she informed him, taking a scolding tone. "All you achieved was getting in the way."

"O-Oh…" he muttered in shame. It turns out he had overreacted, as he was not used to seeing Weiss physically hurt like that. Now he'd pay the price for his actions and, once again, Weiss would scold him for his idiocy–!

"But I could care less about that!" she exclaimed, catching Okuyasu off guard. "You also managed to almost get yourself killed, you idiot! Do you have any idea how _livid_ I would be, how _hurt_ I would feel if you died here and now?!"

 _"She… really cares?"_ he thought with such shock.

Now he really felt stupid. He risked his life for her, and for what? Just to almost die right in front of her? Okuyasu knew very well that he wasn't smart, but this time he was truly reminded of his stupidity. He didn't consider what would happen to him or how it would affect her, all he thought was fighting for the person he loved. And it would have cost them much more then he realized if he died today.

"W-Weiss… I–!" he attempted to apologize to her.

"Quiet!" she interrupted forcefully, making him slightly afraid of his master.

"Why, Okuyasu?!" she demanded of him. "Why on Remnant did you even think you were making a smart move?!"

"… I–!"

Again Okuyasu tried to say something, but this time a loud shifting noise occurred. The both looked to the large doors behind them, and there appeared to be another set of doors opening behind the first. What was once a pitch-black abyss from which the armored giant came from, an opening of bright light shined over them. From this light, everyone could see the silhouette of a person coming forth.

Soon their details and features came into view, and everyone was stupefied to see the President of the Schnee Dust Company before them.

"Mr. President?!" exclaimed the Secretary.

"Father?!" questioned Weiss.

"M-Mr. Schnee?!" blurted Okuyasu.

Jacques walked over to where the two hunters-in-training were resting, looking down on both them with a neutral expression. They couldn't tell if they pleased him or not.

"It seems you disobeyed my order, Okuyasu," finally mentioned. Okuyasu said nothing, but a drop of sweat rolled down the side of his face. "Tell me boy, do you even have an excuse?"

"Father, he didn't mean to–!" Weiss attempted to defend her servant.

"He can speak for himself, Weiss," he declared. Weiss feared what he was going to do once Okuyasu answered him.

"… It pissed me off," stated the delinquent. "That's all there is to it."

Jacques said nothing in response, worrying the both of them.

 _"Well, it's half the truth,"_ Okuyasu thought to himself. He didn't know how Weiss' father would react to him saying he fought just to defend her, so he kept that to himself. The man kept silent for a moment, before finally speaking.

"… Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. You both pass."

"What?" Weiss uttered in confusion.

"Huh?!" Okuyasu shouted in surprise.

"M-Mr. President," the Secretary addressed him, who was the most shocked by his decree. "You can't be serious! … Can you?!"

"The truth is," Jacques began, "I knew you would do something if anything happened to Weiss, no matter how small an offense." His words surprised the two youths.

"The point of your oath was not to see if you would honor your word," he explained, "but if you would go so far as breaking it to protect Weiss. You've proven yourself to be a worthy servant to my daughter, Okuyasu."

"Wow…" Okuyasu was speechless for a moment, until he beamed with another big smile of his. It turns out he passed his own test after all. "Th-thanks, Mr. Schnee!"

"And as for you Weiss," Jacques continued, "all you had to do was defeat the Armor and you have done so, even with Okuyasu's slight interference."

Weiss said nothing in response to that, but she did show some surprise

"Congratulations, you two… you're both allowed to attend Beacon Academy," announced Jacques Schnee. "Good luck."

At that, the President turned around, heading back for the large doors he came through. His Secretary was left speechless, while the moderators started to take their leave for the day. As for Weiss and Okuyasu, they were still taking in the weight of such good news.

"Okuyasu… we did it!" Weiss exclaimed, smiling happily for the first time today.

"We're going to Beacon!" Okuyasu agreed in excitement. "HELL YEAH!"

In their emotional states, the two embraced each other tightly, laughing joyfully to their hearts' content. However, both realized they've just hugged out of nowhere, blushes apparent on their faces and pain erupting from their injuries. Both let go of each other quickly, Weiss clearing her throat and Okuyasu scratching the back of his head.

"A-Ahem… Okuyasu," she began. "I think you should go to the infirmary."

"Oh yeah… you kind of need to be patched up too, right?" he stated, seeing she was had as many injuries at that. Weiss blinked at him in surprise, then laughed in agreement.

"Hah… I suppose I do." As she said that, Weiss gave him a warm smile and he smiled back in response. The two were proud of their accomplishment today, as they were not torn away as they feared they would be.

Weiss managed to stand up first, and soon helped Okuyasu up. Both supported their weight on each other, and they limped to the exit. The Secretary looked down and saw them go, still utterly surprised by the outcome.

"… They're both so much like their elder siblings," she said aloud, with no one in particular listening.

However, with all the happiness and shock going on, there was still one thing everyone didn't know – or rather, had forgotten about Jacques. Regardless of everything, he would do anything to be rid himself of Okuyasu Nijimura. Even if it meant he had to act like a parent.

* * *

 _Present day, at the concert._

* * *

Weiss came back to reality, after seeing those memories in her head. She rubbed her fingers where she was cut that day, which now healed into a scar. She was surprised to have them now of all times, and she wondered why. It didn't matter, the curtains were being drawn, and she had to focus on her voice.

The announcer gave her name, and she stepped forward. She heard the clapping of several thousands of people at her arrival, she looked up and saw them all. As she thought, it was indeed a full house. People from almost everywhere would come to hear her sing. Even from out of the Kingdom, several hundreds of people would flock to her. She may have liked the number of devotees she received, but she never felt anyone wasn't there just to hear a pretty girl sing. It wasn't much of a problem though, as it didn't seem to be too bad of a thing.

Just then, she saw someone up in the front row of the crowd. Someone… familiar, but she wasn't sure exactly who yet. She was still quite a distance from the audience, even from the front row. She squinted to see who exactly she was looking at, and she almost gasped at who it was. It was the very person she hoped would come. The person who was always there for her. The person she was thankful for.

Okuyasu Nijimura was among the audience, noticed by Weiss in that sea of people. He was there to see her sing, his big smile bright enough for even her to see. Somehow, he was wearing a full suit for this occasion; whoever got him in that without her must have had a difficult time. She could see Okuyasu waving to her, hoping she could see him. She couldn't do much as the performance had to begin.

Although, Weiss made sure to give smile that was warm enough for him to see. She hoped that he did, then she started to sing.

* * *

Author's note, 7/18/18:

Oh boy… this has been up for over year, and only now did I update it. I could give a lot of reasons why I haven't posted chapter 2 yet, but that would probably take too many pages for an author's note. What I can say is the major reason I didn't update it is life. I planned to post this at the end of May when my semester ended, but a lot of personal stuff happened. I'm not getting into specifics of my life but, basically, good things and bad things were happening to my family all at the same time. So I apologize immensely for everyone waiting so long, but I made absolutely sure that this wasn't rushed like chapter 1 was. I wanted this chapter to be quality over quantity for everyone reading.

Speaking of chapter 1, I want to discuss at least one thing: the power of Giorno's **Gold Experience** (GE). I usually care for character interactions more than power levels, but I want to be as accurate as possible when depicting them. When I first looked over images of it in action and the canon stats it had, frankly I thought it was bullshit. After finishing the manga… well, I still think it's bullshit, but I also understand now where the stat comes from. I read that C-level strength is equivalent of the average human's, which Giorno's stand is at, but some scenes I saw felt like they weren't consistent with that fact. There's also its A-level speed, which I've interpreted as godlike, so there's also considering the force of its punches being increased by its speed.

But the major thing was in chapter 1, GE was fighting an original kind of Grimm called Newborns, which were the youngest stage of any Grimm in-story. I've interpreted Grimm to grow in durability as they age, so when devising the Newborns, I made them about as durable as a human if not slightly more, so GE wouldn't have a problem pummeling them to death. If that wasn't exactly made clear in the chapter, I apologize. It's still going through some renditions, so I will work that into the chapter's rewrite. So in compensation, GE will have more difficulty in outright punching an adult Grimm in the story, unlike stands such as Crazy Diamond and Star Platinum.

Now, onto this chapter, I was fully excited to write about Okuyasu and I had total fun in depicting him. He has one of the best visual appearances in the series, having those beady eyes and intimidating face. His stand is also one of my favorite designs, having a humanoid form but an inanimate quality to it. Characters like him are kind of easy for me to write, as simple-minded people are easy to understand, easy to write dialogue for, easy to make use of the simplest of motivations, easy this easy that, etcetera, etcetera. I think the dynamic between him and Weiss was fun to write, though the romance factor may have been a little difficult to work in. I hope I didn't make it to dominant, but I at least wanted Weiss to be very close to him before she's actually in love with him, though still taking a strict & profession attitude with due to his ranking as her personal servant.

I had even more fun with this chapter by incorporating story elements from the manga adaptation, by Shirow Miwa. His interpretation to the White Trailer had a lot more explanation and context than the original, which I liked a lot. So, I took inspiration from that by adding the Secretary character and having the armored giant, called the Arma Gigas if I've heard correctly possessed by a Grimm. Of course it wasn't said to actually be a Geist, first seen in Volume 4, so I put my own interpretation into this – clarifying the armor's possessor as a Geist. I didn't have the Secretary say most of her original lines, but I think did nicely in incorporating Okuyasu into her conversation with Weiss. Sometimes when reading crossovers, I see the interactions between characters of different series are a bit dull or one sided. I wanted to make sure Okuyasu was fully present in the scene, not to make the same mistakes some writers do.

Anyway, that's all I got. I was going to add a conversation between Klein Sieben and Okuyasu, but that would have been too many words. I have the rest of this month and August to work on fanfiction, so I'm planning to consistently update my first story, **_Bloody Evolution of the Planet of the Apes_** , and then post a new story until I have to go to school again.

Also, I'm doing polls again! This time I won't do a few polls at the same time, but a series of polls over the period of story updates this year. The polls are shorter in choices too, with everyone deciding on what particular story I should publish. The first poll, the current one, will end a day before **_Bloody Evolution_** chapter 6, and a new one will take its place. I like to interact with any fans I have, so I'd love to hear what people would want to see from me. Please check out the poll I have up now! The theme is what JoJo crossover I should write! Laters!

(Quick Edit: First Poll is closed. Please check profile for the results)


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